I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea.I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a servant of the assembly that is at Cenchreae,I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea:I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church that is at Cenchreæ:
4 sermons cite this verse
… we see it in other parts of the new testament when paul urged the christians in rome he said i commend to you our sister phoebe a servant of the church at synchria that you may receive her not just say hello but receive her welcome her in seat her at your table share a meal with her Receive her in the Lord. Issue an affectionate, familial reception. Jesus received sinners. He ate with them. He pulled them in like they were family. He hung out with them. And the religious heat hated this. he can't be holy if he's hanging out with sinners they grumbled the holier than thou's grumbled at jesus for associating with the dirtier than we so or consequently in response as a result he told them speaking to fumblers and grumblers those parenthetical remarks are mine not luke's this parable. And so the parable begins with that setup. speaking both to grumblers and fumblers, three stories. No one would have imagined the punchline of these three parables. …
… and again, I'll just read it and comment on it. I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a servant, watch, who is a servant of the church in Centuria. how many churches today function because of faithful women this church does that you may receive her in the Lord in the manner worthy of the saints and assist her in whatever business she has need of you. Is Christianity brutal on women? Is faith in Jesus Christ and the word of God? Is it a man's religion? you have Paul the apostle saying Phoebe is precious among the saints so whatever she needs you do it because she has labored she's awesome Phoebe you can search her name out later some of you I commend this study to you do a biographical study on the names that you're going to hear you'll be super blessed Phoebe he says for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also. God bless the women of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ who throughout the gospels and the book of Acts have proven to be some of the greatest pillars. …
… Look at verse 1 of chapter 16. I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Synchrae. That's a seaport relatively close to Corinth. So it's almost certainly the case that he's staying with Gaius in Corinth in Greece, 57 AD. He's dictating the message to Tertius, and this Phoebe is carrying the letter, a servant. That's why he says, I commend her to you that you may welcome her in the Lord. She's the one who's going to be carrying this letter from Corinth, the seaport to Sincrae, over to the Roman church and find these greetings from Paul. Why? Why this letter? There's not just one reason. We'll find many. He wanted to address typical Jew-Gentile controversies. He wanted to establish unity in the church. He wanted to stir up and encourage support for his own mission on his way to Spain. There were specific controversies and confusions. The fact that he has all of these personal notes in chapter 16 lets us know he knows a lot of people, so they're no doubt telling him what some of the issues are. …
… and ask you to stand for the reading of the Word of God. I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a servant of the church in Sancria, that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you, for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also. Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risk their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. Likewise, greet the church that is in their house. Greet my beloved Aponitas, who was the firstfruits of Acacia to Christ. Greet Mary, who labored much for us. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my countrymen and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me. Greet Amplius, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and Stachys, my beloved. …