Monthly Archives: September 2014

Unity – The Hallmark Of The True Church

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UNITY – THE HALLMARK OF THE TRUE CHURCH

“Greet Mary… Andronicus and Junia… Ampliatus… Urbanus and Stachys… Apelles… Aristobulus… Herodion… the household of Narcissis… Tryphena and Tryphosa… Persis… Rufus and his mother… Asynchritis… Phlegon… Hermes… Patrobas… Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them… Philologus… Julia… Nereus and his sister… Olympas and all the Lord’s people with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings.” Romans 16:6-16.

Strange-sounding names! Real people! Paul knew a host of people, both men and women in the churches in Rome, well-known associates who had worked with him or who had served well in the churches he had founded or with whom he was closely associated. He was always quick to commend or show appreciation for his fellow believers.

When one thinks that this was a young movement in the Roman Empire – not even thirty years old, with no history except that of the Jewish people, which was their root, the maturity of God’s people in a hostile environment was amazing. They had to be, because there were few grey areas in the church.

O yes, there were always the false teachers who distorted the gospel and tried to lure people away. There were the gullible ones, who left the flock to follow them. But to be a follower of Jesus was dangerous and not for the faint-hearted. His true disciples knew the risks, stuck together and supported and cared for one another, creating a tight-knit group across the empire called “the church”.

“I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people.” Romans 16:17, 18.

Into this close fellowship crept those who were there for their own reasons. Paul was not shy to warn believers about those who sowed dissention and taught lies to confuse, cause division and lure people into following them. Jesus described these people as “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” From the earliest days of the infant church, the apostles were careful to preserve the precious unity that the Holy Spirit had created in the beginning.

“All the believers were together and had everything in common… All the believers were one in heart and mind…” Acts 2:44; Acts 4:32a.

As the church grew and spread, there were the unscrupulous ones, always ready to do the work of their master, the devil. The apostles all warned the flock against such people. On his way to Jerusalem for the last time, Paul warned the Ephesian elders

“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that, after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.” Acts 20:28-30.

How tragic that there are people who are so greedy and self-centred, in spite of hearing the truth, that they use unsuspecting people for their own ends.  Leaders in the church have a threefold responsibility – to protect love, preserve unity and promote contentment. Paul’s counsel was, “Be ruthless with those who cause division. Have nothing to do with them. Throw out the rotten apple from the box before it infects all the others.”

Why is this so important? Unity is the very glue of the universe. It is a reflection of who God is.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Deuteronomy 6:4, was the daily confession of the people of God. The constitution of Israel, the Torah, was an expression of and a mandate to preserve unity among His people because God is one. It is our mandate to maintain that unity in humility by love and mutual submission under the authority and leadership of God’s appointed leaders so that the church can be a reflection of God to the world.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

A Postscript

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 A POSTSCRIPT

“I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchrea. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of His people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.” Romans 16:1, 2.

Chapter 15 ends with a greeting as though it were the end of the letter. Chapter 16 adds personal details that show Paul’s intimate connection with the Roman church (probably made up of many small house churches), even though the church was not founded by him. It also gives a glimpse of the interconnection between the churches though they were scattered far and wide across the empire.

He also shows us how closely he was allied to the yoke of his Master. Jesus honoured and respected women. He treated them with the same dignity that He treated men. Women were not inferior beings, nor were they second-class citizens, unreliable and at men’s disposal to be at their beck and call. From Jesus’ perspective, women were the crown of His creation, and to be treasured like fragile and delicate bone china.

Phoebe had a servant heart. She was a “deacon” in the church from which she came, not necessarily as an office but as a function. She must have been visiting Rome for some or other reason. It fell to Paul, who knew her and knew the value she was to her local church, to commend her to the Roman congregations so that she would have a home base while she was in their city.

“Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the Gentiles are grateful to them. Greet also the church that meets at their house…” Romans 16:3-5.

This is a puzzling verse. Priscilla and Aquila, a Jewish Christian couple, had been expelled from Rome, along with all the Jews in Rome during the reign of the Emperor Claudius. They moved to Corinth where Paul met them and stayed with them, working together with them as tentmakers, and preaching every Sabbath in the synagogue (Acts 18:2-4).

At some point, they moved to Ephesus where they met Apollos, a Jewish believer from Alexandria who knew only the baptism of John and whom they instructed more fully in the Scriptures. Apollos became a powerful teacher and ally of Paul in Ephesus

Why were they back in Rome and apparently resident there again? Was it possible that many of the Jews, Priscilla and Aquila included, returned to their old home after Claudius’ death? When Paul reached Rome under Roman guard, he preached to many Jews who came to his home where he was under house arrest (Acts 28:17, 23).

Priscilla and Aquila led a group of believers who met in their home. Paul was eager to pass on his greetings to them because they had meant a great deal to him in his travels and ministry in Europe. Priscilla appears to have been the more prominent of the two since her name is consistently mentioned first.

“…Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.” Romans 16:5b.

What a network of friends and colleagues Paul had across the whole empire, not just converts but dear personal friends whom he remembered with great affection! Probably because the church had become an offence to both Jews and Gentiles, and many superstitions had grown up around this “secret society” including the accusation of cannibalism because of their celebration of the Lord’s death, the believers were isolated and stuck together, doing life together and connecting with each other as they moved around the empire.

They had a “social network” of personal interaction, not on the World Wide Web but of hospitality and letters and messages passed from one to the other to keep them connected and their faith alive as they supported and encouraged one another in a hostile environment. We can learn a great deal from the early church about the meaning of fellowship.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Pray For Me

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PRAY FOR ME

 

“So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this contribution, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.” Romans 15: 28, 29.

Paul related his plans with such confidence! It sounds so easy, as though he would hop on a plane in Jerusalem and disembark in Rome before catching another flight to Spain a few days later. But that was not the case. He was talking about many weeks of travel, by sea, catching a ride wherever he could on primitive and precarious cargo vessels, and over land, mostly on foot through difficult terrain full of perils.

But he had a desire and a plan and he was determined to see it through. He was aware that he had a mission to fulfill – to carry the blessing of the message about Christ wherever he went. He had a deposit of the truth within him. It was his duty to give it away to people everywhere and to share the blessings of Jesus as far and wide as he possibly could.

“I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favourably received by the Lord’s people there, so that I may come to you with joy, by God’s will, and in your company be refreshed. The God of peace be with you all.” Romans 15:30-33.

At the same time, Paul was no stoic. He was well aware of the dangers that awaited him in Jerusalem. If he was hated and persecuted by his unbelieving countrymen in Europe and Asia Minor, how much more was his life in danger in his own land? The Jewish leaders, some of whom had been part of the campaign against Jesus, were there and they would not tolerate his presence because his reputation would have gone before him. He was their erstwhile ally turned traitor, and they would make every effort to get rid of him when he put his foot on home soil.

He urged his fellow believers in Rome to pray for his safety and for the success of his undertaking to deliver the gift of the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. Would they receive the gift since it had come from Gentiles? What if his mission was in vain because of the deep-seated prejudice of his Jewish friends? These were issues that troubled Paul. He needed the prayer partnership of fellow believers wherever he could garner their support, and he was not too proud or independent to ask for their help.

Apostle though he was, Paul was also aware of his humanity and his vulnerability. He was no brazen macho, powering his way around the empire as though he were invincible. Life was a struggle for him. He was in the middle of warfare on two fronts.

There was a relentless enemy all around him, seeking his destruction through every means possible. He was an enemy of unbelieving Jews who were scattered throughout the empire and he was an enemy of the state because he refused to kowtow to Caesar’s demand to be worshipped as a god. He proclaimed Jesus as Lord wherever he went and gathered a following in every city and town where he preached.

There was also a relentless enemy within, his own sinful nature which had to be subdued by submitting to and obeying his Lord in spite of the fears and insecurities that constantly assailed him.  He felt the weight of responsibility for all the churches on his shoulders. He was driven to preach, write and go to every corner of the empire to make Christ known and to nurture the believers with his knowledge of the truth.

He needed the support of fellow believers and he was not afraid to ask for it. It was comforting for him to know that he was not alone in this great enterprise; that though they could not go with him, they could be with him through their love and prayers. In a hostile world, the church was his refuge and his fellow believers his covering as he ventured forth from the safety of their company to fulfill his mission to the world.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Unfulfilled Dreams

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UNFULFILLED DREAMS

“This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you. But now there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there.” Romans 15:22-25.

The Bible is such an interesting book! Not a book of philosophy or ethics, it’s a book about people, ordinary people, not plaster saints.

Although Paul was a servant of the Lord and in partnership with the Holy Spirit, he had plans and dreams which he wanted to fulfil, and which the Holy Spirit allowed him to follow as and when it fitted in with His bigger plan. Rome was Paul’s goal, the centre and hub of the known world. There was already a church there, no doubt the outcome of the witness of believers who moved in and out of the city.

As an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul felt responsible for all His churches, even those he had not personally founded. However, since it was his ambition to take the gospel where Christ has not already been preached, his priority was to go to those regions first. Rome would have to wait. But now, it seems, he was running out of virgin territory and his thoughts turned to the people of God in the Eternal City.

He took the opportunity to write a letter to them, first of all to give them a thorough explanation of the message of God’s righteousness revealed in Christ, and then to prepare them for his visit sometime soon. He was not aware at that time, that the Holy Spirit had other plans for getting him to Rome.

Still a free man, he was on his way to Jerusalem to deliver the offering from the churches in Macedonia and Achaia to the believers in Jerusalem who were in great need because of a famine in the land.

“For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.” Romans 15:26, 27.

Paul was unaware, at that time, of a serious interruption in his plans that was coming as a result of his ministry to the Gentiles. He was a marked man! The moment he put his foot in Jerusalem, he would become the target of a torrent of Jewish hatred and murderous intent. Yes, he would go to Rome as he longed to do but, compliments of the Roman government, under Roman guard and at Rome’s expense.

He would not see Spain as he planned, but he had a commission to fulfil, as revealed to Ananias at the start of Paul’s Christian journey. He must still stand before Nero to proclaim the name of Jesus.

“But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.'” Acts 9:15, 16.

Nero, like many of his predecessors and successors, thought he was God and demanded worship as Lord, Saviour and Prince of Peace! He had to learn, once and for all, that there is only one Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ, given the title by the God of the universe. Once he had heard the truth, he would have no excuse.

Paul’s dream to visit the Roman church as a free man was never fulfilled, yet God honoured his passion to go to Rome. Paul was content to carry out the Lord’s will, no matter what it cost him. Perhaps, for him to suffer for his Lord, unexpected though it was, was for him the highest honour because his Master had suffered for him in the city of God in his homeland.

It was perfectly okay for him to tell them his plans as long as they understood that his plans were always subject to his Master’s plans to whom he was submitted for better or for worse.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Bragging on God

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BRAGGING ON GOD

“Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done – by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Holy Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. Rather, as it is written, ‘Those who were not told about Him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.'” Romans 15:17-21.

What place is there for boasting in the work of God’s kingdom? Was it right for Paul to boast about his accomplishments?

First of all, let’s look as Paul’s motive. What was he trying to prove? Was he, like the little boy in the nursery rhyme, patting himself on the back and saying, “What a good boy am I?” It could be if we do not take into account what it cost Paul to do what he was doing. The list of hardships he suffered for the sake of the gospel was far more that most of us have ever had to go through, including beatings, shipwreck, imprisonment and persecution at the hands of his own people. What sane person would choose to endure these things unless he were committed to something or Someone much bigger than himself?

Secondly, was Paul taking the credit for what he had done? How could he when he was just a man? His was a partnership with the Holy Spirit where he did the preaching and the Holy Spirit confirmed His word with the power of signs and wonders. Had Paul preached anything other than the truth, he would have been on his own. It was God’s word that was confirmed to be the truth by the miracles that happened.

Strange, isn’t it that Luke said very little in his story about miracles! They were happening, but he did not major on them because they had their place in a much bigger story. The Book of Acts is not primarily about what the apostles accomplished but about a much bigger miracle, the church, beginning and growing in hostile soil and yet flourishing against all odds because it was the work of God, not a new religion started by man.

Thirdly, Paul’s ambition was about serving God, not himself. Oh yes, he had ambitions, but they were not self-seeking, self-exalting plans to make a name for himself. His ambition was to go where no one else had to gone to make Christ known where He was unknown. That meant that Paul had to take risks and travel to the farthest ends of the Roman Empire, but always in the will and under the supervision of the Holy Spirit.

The story of Acts reveals that he was not only ambitious but obedient. He went where the Spirit directed him. On the other hand, he didn’t sit around waiting for detailed marching orders. He made his plans and got on with the job. The Holy Spirit was there to redirect him when He wanted him to move in another direction.

So Paul could brag about his accomplishments with confidence because he was not bragging about himself as much as he was bragging on God. He could take no credit for himself for what had been accomplished. Without the Holy Spirit he was nothing but an empty shell, a mere human with no engine and no GPS.

One thing Luke’s story makes very clear. Paul and his fellow apostles were not in it for what they could get out of it. They had an assignment to complete regardless of the hazards they encountered along the way. It was not about how easy they could make it for themselves, but how faithfully they would carry out their commission until it was completed.

Paul’s words to his young partner, Timothy, at the end of his life are testimony to a job well done, words of confidence and assurance because he had fulfilled his side of the bargain.

“For I am ready to be poured out like a drink offering, and the time of my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:6, 7.

Another boast? Yes, but a boast based on a life of faithfulness and obedience. What boast is there in saying, “I have done what I was told to do”? He did his duty; that was all. As for him, so for us. We shall receive our full reward if we have done our duty.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.