Romans 16:1-5a

Romans 16:1-5a I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you: for she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also. Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus: Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. Likewise greet the church that is in their house. Chapter 16 of Romans has a big list of names in it. Although this list is a personal list that the Apostle Paul sent to the church in Rome almost 2,000 years ago, it is still useful for us to look at. Paul had not been to Rome as of yet, but he already knew many of the people who were there in the Roman church. He had met them earlier and they had gone to Rome before Paul went. Obviously, Paul knew Phoebe and loved her. She had been a blessing to many people, and Paul used Phoebe to deliver his letter to the church in Rome. See verse 27. He wanted the church in Rome to realize how much they were indebted to Phoebe and to be a blessing to her as she already had been to so many other people. And then Paul sends greetings to Aquila and his wife, Priscilla. They were tentmakers like Paul and had contact with him many times before. Aquila and Priscilla weren’t just fair-weather Christians, they were serious Christians who had stood up for Paul and had risked their lives to help Paul on his dangerous missions. They even had a church which met in their home. This was a big deal as the citizens of Rome worshiped Caesar as a god. Aquila and Priscilla not only risked their lives for Paul, but they continued to risk their lives teaching others about Jesus Christ in Rome.