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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. 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.
Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them. Greet also the church that meets at their house.
Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.
Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.
Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.
Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.
Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.
Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test.
Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.
Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.
Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.
Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.
Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.
Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.
Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.
Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people who are with them.
Greet one another with a holy kiss.
Romans 16:1-16
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Personal recognition is important.
Whether at work, at home, or even at church, people like to feel valued for what they do and so when someone takes the time to single out individuals for praise, it always seems to favorably received.
As we look at the first sixteen verses of the final chapter of Romans, we find the Apostle Paul intentionally calling out people who had worked particularly hard for the cause of Christ in Rome.
You’ll remember that Paul is in Corinth, a stop he made during his third missionary journey, when he pens this letter to Rome around 56AD. In Chapter 15, we read where Paul had future travel plans which included dropping off donations from Christians in Macedonia and Achaia to the poor in Jerusalem before then heading to Spain where the Gospel had not yet been spread. On the way to Spain, Paul planned to stop and visit Rome but he wanted to share his thoughts with the Romans before that happened thus why he was writing this letter.
How would Paul get it to Rome?
We find out in verses 1 and 2 of chapter 16:
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. 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.
Cenchreae was a harbor controlled by the city of Corinth in Greece. There was obviously a Christian church there and Phoebe was a deacon in the church. Her mention and the prominent role she is given to deliver Paul’s correspondence highlights that women played an important role in the early Christian church, not given minor roles but ones of significant leadership.
Paul exhorts the Romans to welcome Phoebe and offer her great hospitality, receiving her “in the Lord in a way worthy of His people”. They were to “give her any help she may need” for indeed, Paul’s letter deliverer has been the benefactor of others, graciously giving of herself to attend to any person’s needs. Paul validated his words by letting the Romans know that even he had been on the receiving end of Phoebe’s goodness as she obviously did something to aid Paul during his ministry work.
As we look at the remainder of Paul’s list of Roman believers worthy of commendation, we once again see a significant number of women involved. In fact, the number of women leaders in the church outnumbered the males, 7 to 6, and although this doesn’t seem all that noteworthy, we need to remember just how patriarchal society was in first century AD. It definitely wasn’t like it is today in the 21st century in regard to a woman’s role in society or the church where it’s equitable for the most part and not even questioned.
The bottom line is that the Lord can and will install leaders for His work and for His glory, no matter the gender. It was true in New Testament times and it’s still true today.
As for the commended group as a whole, here is a summary of their specific achievements that got them on Paul’s list:
1. Priscilla and Aquila risked their lives to save Paul.
2. Epenetus was “the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia”.
3. Mary worked hard in the church for her brothers and sisters in Christ.
4. Andronicus and Junia were Jews who converted to Christianity as Paul did but did so before him. They also ended up jailed with Paul for their commitment to the Gospel.
5. Ampliatus was Paul’s “dear friend in the Lord” as was Stachys.
6. Urbanus was a co-worker in Christ.
7. Apelles had his faith in Jesus tested and showed great fidelity to His Savior.
8. We’re not sure what they had done to deserve recognition but Paul also mentions “those who belong to the household of Aristobulus”.
9. Herodion who was a fellow Jew.
10. The household of Narcissus “who were in the Lord”.
11. Tryphena, Tryphosa, and Persis, three women applauded for their hard work for the Lord.
12. Rufus who was “chosen in the Lord” and his mother who had been like a mother to Paul as well.
13. Finally, a list of people who Paul must have knew and loved. They included Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas as well as “all the Lord’s people” who were with them.
All and all, it was quite a collection of people who had done great things in the name of Jesus, a collection of people who Paul felt should be singled out for special recognition. But note that Paul really didn’t want anyone to feel left out. He desired for all Christian believers to feel cared for and appreciated.
And so we see him close these first sixteen verses centered on loving greetings by saying this:
Greet one another with a holy kiss.
It was commonplace for people to greet one another with a kiss whether meeting or departing company. The kiss was intended to be grounded in caring and affection for the person being greeted with it but Paul ups the ante on the kiss, commanding that it be holy. In other words, the kiss was to be set apart and special in that it conveyed the very love of the Lord Himself.
And perhaps there could be no greater feeling of being cared for than knowing the Lord valued and loved you, a truth set free by a holy kiss from another. That makes anyone who extends a kiss of this kind, a holy kiss, an accessory of the Lord’s expressed loving kindness and goodness extended to His people.
Friends, today we can still laud people for the great work they do for Jesus and we should. If the Apostle Paul could, we can too.
We should also look to greet one another with a holy kiss whenever possible, knowing that it’s an extension of the Lord’s love to the person receiving the kiss and a reminder of how deeply He cares for all His people.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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