We are going to continue our conversation tonight in Romans, chapter 16. If you would like to begin making your way there in your Bible or on your phone. Romans, chapter 16. As you begin turning that way, I want to share two words with you, and I want to talk about the difference between the two words. And you've probably heard the words before, but the words are isegesis and exegesis. Now they stand on opposite sides, and exegesis is the ultimate goal. And what exegesis means is it literally means to draw out or to pull from. Whenever we study a passage of scripture, our goal is to use exegesis. We want to correctly exegete a passage of scripture and draw out from the scripture the meaning of the text as given by the original author and intended by God. Our goal is always to exegete. But one of the great risks that we run in studying God's word is that if we're not careful, we can do something called isagesis, which means we lean into or we press in upon the text. Sometimes we do this unconsciously. We have experience, we have knowledge, and we press into a text. Sometimes what it is not rightfully meaning to say or interpreting, it's a big thing that we steward in our study of God's word to make sure that we are not imposing a meaning upon a text. The number one way that we safeguard against isagesis, the number one way we ensure that we are not imposing a meaning upon a passage of scripture, is by stepping back from any given passage and affirming our conclusion on the rest of the teaching of scripture. With any point that scripture is making, with any conclusion that we are drawing and applying to our lives and applying to the church, we should be able to draw back and take a wider lens from scripture and say, what does the rest of scripture say about this conclusion? Is this conclusion being affirmed by other passages of scripture, or is this conclusion being challenged by other passages of scripture? Because there is a harmony in scripture from beginning to end. And one of the critical things that we need to be doing in this conversation, particularly with one Corinthians, chapter 14, one Timothy, chapter two, and one Timothy, chapter three that we have studied together this last three weeks, is to now step back and look at a wider lens. We need to step back and ask the question. The conclusions that we have drawn, are they affirmed or are they challenged by the rest of the teaching of scripture? And if they're challenged, we need to go back and press in, because perhaps we have used isegesis instead of exegesis. Romans, chapter 16 is going to provide for us the wider lens. My hope is that we'll walk through this passage of scripture together, primarily verses one through twelve, and be able to take a broader view of life in the New Testament church, and in particularly the teachings and the letters of the apostle Paul. And so what I would like for us to do is just begin reading and we'll read the first 16 verses together. Romans, chapter 16, verse one. Paul says, I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church of Centuria. 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 Epinus, who was the first convert to Christ in the providence 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 Amplytus, my dear friend in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our co worker in Christ. And my dear friend stasis. Greet Apollos, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodian, my fellow Jew. Greet those in the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord. Greet Trifina and Trifosa, those women who worked hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Perseusus, 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. Greet Philagius, Julia, neurisus, and his sister Olympus, and all the Lord's people who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings by show of hands. How many of you would like it if Brother Don, when he said, why don't you take a moment and greet those one another around you? How many of you would like it if he said, why don't you greet one another with a holy kiss? I don't know how well that would go over at First Baptist Church of Alexandria. I want us to take a moment and consider the list of names and the people that are in this passage of scripture. I'm going to use a slide behind me because I recognize there's a lot of names, and we're going to talk about a lot of things. And so I hope that this will help. If you're taking notes and walking through this passage of scripture together, first thing I want to do is I want to just take a broad view on this passage. And I want you to recognize a couple of things Paul mentions in the passage that we just read, 29 individuals. Of the 29 individuals that are mentioned here in Romans chapter 1610, of them are women. And while that in and of itself is not statistically significant, if you will, what is important about this is that Paul is mentioning women in some very specific and particular roles within the New Testament church. He mentions in Romans chapter 16 six different functions in the New Testament church. Those functions are listed here. And what we are going to do is we're going to concentrate specifically on the six functions that Paul mentions in Romans chapter 16. And we are going to look at the men and women that fulfill these six functions in the church at Rome that Paul is actually commending and celebrating to the church at Rome and then to us today. And what we need to see in this passage of scripture is that we need both men and women healthily functioning within leadership roles in the church. Paul is going to show us that we need both, and he's going to show us in this passage who is serving in what ways and are fulfilling what roles specifically. So we're going to walk through Romans chapter 16, looking at these six functions and then identifying the people whom Paul is putting in each of these six functions. There are many other people that are listed here in this passage of scripture, but Paul, for some, doesn't say anything about them other than calling them out by name. But truth be told, even getting named by the apostle Paul is an honor. But there are others who Paul describes with descriptives, words, but not necessarily functional roles within the church. And so we won't dig in too deeply on those. For example, he will call some people fellow prisoners, beloved, approved, or elect. And while that is telling us something about the person, it's not necessarily denoting a function within the church. So we're going to focus in particular upon the people who are in functions, these six functions within the church at Rome that he is commending to us. So let's start at the top. Let's start with the first function that is mentioned. And it's mentioned to us in Romans chapter 16, verse one. He says, I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church at Ciceronia. Now, we need to understand that the first role or function that is mentioned is in fact the role of deacon. This is the word servant, and it is the same word that is used throughout the New Testament to talk specifically about the office of a deacon or a servant within the church. But what is of particular importance in verse one is notice that she is a servant or a deacon of the church at centuria. The reason that that is important is because we need to recognize that this is a church who has appointed Phoebe in the role of a deacon. So she has a role that is acknowledged by a church, and she has been appointed to this role on behalf of the church or on behalf of the congregation. Now, you and I all have different views on what deacons do. That comes in part from our experience as we have moved from churches. From various churches. Deacons have functioned in different capacities, doing different things within a church. But I want to remind you for the purpose of our conversation, that as we studied together last week, in one Timothy, chapter three, a deacon is one of two offices that is prescribed in scripture for the leadership of the church. And in verse one, we find that Phoebe, a woman, has been appointed to the role of a deacon. She is holding this function and this office. The name Phoebe, in and of itself is not a jewish name, but rather, we believe on the basis of her name that she is, in fact, a gentile. She would have been a convert to the church, and a very powerful one at that. The apostle Paul calls her our sister, denoting that she is a Christian and a member of the church at large. And in particular here, she is a deacon in this local congregation. But of verses one and two, I also want you to notice that verses one and two, speaking about Phoebe, are serving as a letter of recommendation for her to the church at Rome. So Paul is actually commending Phoebe to the church at Rome, and it's functioning like a letter of recommendation. And I highlight that for you because we believe historically that Phoebe was actually the carrier of this letter to the church at Rome. We believe that Phoebe is the one who took this letter from the apostle Paul and delivered it to the church at Rome. And what makes that so significant is that in the first century, we know that literacy rates among the whole world population were around less than 5%. But for Phoebe, a woman, to be given the letter and then delivering it unto the church, it most likely means that she read and shared the letter to the church as well. And so while we can't prove it, we also historically believe that it is likely that Phoebe would have been one of the first people to share from the letter of Romans to the New Testament church, making it quite a significant moment and a significant observation here in scripture. She is not identified by her occupation. She is not identified by her husband, but she is identified by her function in the church. She is our sister, and she is a deacon of a local congregation. And Paul says of her in verse two, I asked you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people, and to give her any help that she may need from you, for she has been a benefactor of many people, including me. Paul is commending. He is celebrating, and he is encouraging the church at Rome to acknowledge her, to receive her, and to celebrate what she has done for the kingdom. The second function that is mentioned here is also mentioned of Phoebe in verse two. The Niv says of Phoebe in the second half of the verse. She has been the benefactor of many people, including me. Other translations particularly if you're reading the ESV, it will say of Phoebe that she has been a patron or a patroness of many people, including me. Now, the concept of a patron or a patroness is not a familiar term that we use today, but in the ancient church, in ancient Rome, in the first century church, the relationship of a patron and clients was quite frequent or quite common. What we know is that there would be people who were of great affluence, that is, both in financial wealth as well as in a high place in society, and they would use their affluence as a means to promote a cause. A patron would essentially establish a relationship with a person or an organization, and they would contribute to the work, but they would also use their status to promote that organization or that individual. It's very akin to what you and I see today as a celebrity endorsement or a political endorsement. Someone uses their affluence to endorse or to support a cause or an individual. That is what a patron or a patroness does. They are someone of great affluence and great wealth that then uses that for the benefit of the church. Phoebe is being described to us as a benefactor or as a patron. She is not the only one in scripture that is listed as a patron. We read about another patron in the book of First Thessalonians, chapter five, and we see that one of the things that blessed the early church was people would use their affluence to support the church. They would use the wealth and the position in society that God had given them to promote the work of the kingdom and to promote the gospel. Phoebe is one such individual, she is a benefactor or a patroness that is using her position to bless and to further the kingdom's cause. And Paul is grateful for her position. He is grateful for what she has done for the church. He says of her, she has been the benefactor of many, including me. Her position in society has even benefited Paul and his ministry. So Phoebe is mentioned in two functions, a deacon and a patron or a patroness. The third function that Paul describes comes in verse three. He says, greek, priscilla and aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus. The third function that Paul is mentioning here is that of a coworker. Now, this is a very common term that is used throughout the New Testament to speak of individuals who are serving within the church. Timothy. Even here in chapter 16, if you look down in verse 21, Timothy is referred to as a coworker, or the same word that we see here in verse three, we know of other people. Epidymus in the book of Philippians, we know Philemon. In Philemon verse two, we know that Eodia and syndicate. In Philippians, chapter four, they are all described as coworkers. That is, they are serving within the church, and they are helping the church internally, and they're helping the church accomplish its work in the community and the kingdom at large. There are three individuals in verses one through 16 that are mentioned in this function of coworker. In verse nine, you have Urbanus. And then in verse three, as we saw a moment ago, you have Priscilla and Aquila. I want to focus in a little bit on Priscilla and Aquila, because if you are familiar with your New Testament, they are all over your New Testament. This is a power couple in the kingdom of God. They are a husband and wife. They are married, and they were involved at the church at Corinth. They were involved at the church in Ephesus. They're now involved in the church at Rome. This is a couple who is just moving and doing incredible things for the kingdom of God. You'll notice in verse three that her name is actually listed first before his name. What that probably means is that she is the one of high society. She is the one who is probably of a higher class, and he married up. And so her name is listed first here in this passage of scripture. But we know that their lives have been dedicated to the work of the church. They are mentioned in one Corinthians, chapter 16, acts, chapter 18, as well as two Timothy, chapter four. Paul also says of them in verse four that they risked their lives for me, not only I. But all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful for them. You may recall a moment in Paul's life that's recorded in acts, chapter 19, when Paul was in Ephesus. Paul got himself in trouble to the point of threat of execution. But we understand in this moment, and then again affirmed here that it was Priscilla and Aquila who put their lives on the line to help Paul in this moment in Ephesus. We also know of them that they were very influential in all of the Gentile churches. There's one other key moment I want to remind you of about Priscilla and Aquila, just so we can continue to understand their influence upon the church. There's also a moment recorded in scripture where a well known African, a man by the name of Apollos, is teaching, and he's teaching incorrect theology about baptism. And it is Priscilla and Aquila who pull him aside and instruct him in the teachings of Christ and the teachings of the New Testament church. And so really, theological education finds its start or its foundation in training preachers and training communicators right here with Priscilla and Aquila. And they are coworkers in the church. They are laboring in many churches, serving and doing some incredible things. The third function is laborers. They also though, as described in verse five, they are also hosting a church in their home. The early church was not like ours. They were not blessed with a beautiful campus on multiple acres and buildings that would house the worship services and ministry. The early church met in homes. And as a church planter, April and I participated in church planning in central Texas. I can appreciate people who opened their homes for new church starts. It's not easy. It's great sacrifice, and it is an important part of establishing a church. Priscilla and Aquila are hosting a church in their home, and there are many others that are hosting churches. It was an important function in the life of the New Testament church. There are two others that are mentioned as church host. You'll find them listed in verses ten and verse eleven. You see, he says, at the end of verse ten, greet those who belong to the household of Aristubilus. And also in verse eleven, he says, greet those in the household of narcissists who are in the Lord. We believe that those families were a nucleus of a house church, that they too were hosting a church and fulfilling that function. The fifth function that is mentioned in Romans chapter 16 is that of a laborer. Now, I need to distinguish a laborer from someone who is a coworker. As we talked about earlier that we saw in verse three this word coworker. We are now seeing a function that is being described as a laborer. If you look at verse six, it says, greet Mary, who worked. Some of your translations will say, who labored very hard for you. This word, worked or labored, is used specifically by Paul to talk about the work of evangelism. Whenever Paul talks about his labor and he uses this word specifically, he is talking about his work of evangelism. So we see Paul when he describes his own ministry efforts in the New Testament, when he uses this specific word, labor or a laborer, he is talking very pointedly about the work of evangelism, that is, proclaiming the gospel and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with others. And I want you to notice who are the evangelists? Who are the laborers. Verse six, it says, greet Mary, who labored very hard for you. Verse twelve, greet tyrophina and Trifosa, those women who labored in the Lord who worked very hard. Greet my dear friend Perseus, another woman who has labored or worked very hard in the Lord. Four women right here are being described as doing the work of evangelism. The same word that Paul describes of his own work of evangelism is being applied to these four women in Romans chapter 16. So when we read the word in verse six or in verse twelve that they worked very hard, it doesn't mean that they did the dishes on a Wednesday night after a dinner. They labored. They shared the gospel. They labored like the apostle Paul in proclaiming the good news of Jesus, the same way that Paul called Timothy to labor and to do the work. The labor of an evangelist is the same thing that he is saying. These women have functioned within the church. The 6th and final function in Romans chapter 16 that is mentioned is that of the apostle, and it is listed in verse seven. He says, 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. Let me distinguish specifically the work of an apostle in the New Testament context. To be an apostle doesn't simply mean that you preach, but to be an apostle also means that you are responsible for starting churches. You are responsible for establishing and having authority within congregations and helping the church spread around the world. So an apostle specifically has authority in churches that they are planting or that they are responsible for stewarding and for starting. And so Paul says to us this function in verse seven, greet Andronicus and Junia. Now let me share something with you. There has been a vein of scholarship that has said Andronicus and Junia are two men. Now, most scholarship that is recent has ruled out that Junia is a man based on a punctuation mark. It's a little bit vague, truth be told. And if you research this Moment in these two indiViduals, you will find a vein of scholarship that says, these are two men. But you will also find a vein of scholarship that says, this is a husband and a wife, just like Priscilla and Aquila. And the original text uses the feminine Junia and not Junius. And so there is a male version of this name. But what is used in Romans 16, verse seven is a female name. I personally believe it's a man and a woman. But what is somewhat in question is what is the apostle Paul saying about them? And really, there are two options. And I want to be truthful with you tonight on these two options. He says they are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was. Paul could be saying one of two things. He could be saying that they are thought highly of by the apostles, that they are esteemed by the apostles, that the apostles think a lot of them, and that the apostles are grateful for them, and that the apostles welcome them and celebrate that they work, that they are doing. One option is that Paul is saying they are highly esteemed by the apostles. The second option is that Paul could be saying that they are apostles. He could be saying to us, they are outstanding among the apostles. That is, they are numbered among the apostles. In the early church, either option is viable based on the teaching of scripture. It could be one of two conclusions about their role within their church and their function within the church. But the apostle is the 6th function that is listed here in verses one through twelve. So I don't expect you to keep up with all of that. And so here is a chart. What I want you to notice here are the six functions on one side. And here are the men and the women that have been described as fulfilling these functions in the church at Rome. And what I want you to notice for just a moment in this passage of scripture is that there are six functions. And in these six functions, there are five men fulfilling three functions that are being described. Second thing I want you to notice is that there are seven women fulfilling all six functions. Now, this is not a comprehensive list of the leadership at the church at Rome. I am certain that there is additional leadership to this that is not listed or mentioned, nor do we need to draw from this that the church at Rome was predominantly led by women. That is not what we need to conclude from here. But what we do need to recognize is that in the church of Rome, when he is describing the functions and the leadership that exist in this church in particular, there are seven women that are fulfilling all six functions. And even if you say that the apostle the verse seven was not fulfilled by Junia, that they weren't apostles, you still find that five of the six functions are affirmatively fulfilled by women within the church at Rome. And so what we need to understand about this in light of our conversation is that when Paul has said to the church at Corinth, in one Corinthians, chapter 14, that women should be silent, and when Paul has said in one Timothy, chapter two, that women are not permitted to teach or exercise authority over a man, what we need to see about those teachings is that Paul did not universally apply those as prohibitions to the churches that he wrote to, or nor do we see those principles of prohibition being applied universally to the first century church. Rather, the conclusion that we have proposed for the last three weeks is that Paul is writing very specifically to these churches, and there is still very much valid application for us in these passages of scripture. But the prohibition that women should be silent and cannot teach is challenged by the functions that we see the women fulfilling in Romans chapter 16. And so if we take a broader view of the New Testament church, and we take a broader view of the life and the functioning of the church, it challenges how we interpret one Corinthians 14 and one Timothy, chapter two and chapter three. And our desire is to be faithful to all of scripture. And so I want to conclude tonight's conversation with a passage from Galatians, and I want to just read to you from Galatians, chapter three. And you can just listen to these words. It's Galatians, chapter three, verse 23. Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come and would be revealed. He's talking about the Old Testament, and he's talking about how Christ has changed our relationship with God. So the law was our guardian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. Now this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. So in Christ Jesus, you are all children of God through faith. For all of you who were Women in Leadership Part 4.txt[3/6/24, 3:26:31 PM] baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. Verse 28. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. Think with me for a moment about what Paul is saying about the work of Christ. Think with me for a moment about what Christ has accomplished. I don't think we fully grasp what Jesus has done for us. Listen to what he said. He said, there is neither Jew nor gentile. As a gentile, I am so grateful for this moment. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor there is male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. In the life of the New Testament church, we see that God, through Christ Jesus, has removed limitations, and he has endowed the church with a gifting that does not acknowledge Jew, gentile, slave, free, male or female. For what Christ has been able to accomplish has changed everything. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we are so thankful for Jesus. And Father, I pray that you would help us recognize what Jesus has done. Father, what you have done for us through faith in Christ. Father, you have forgiven us of our sins. You have shown us more mercy and grace than we can comprehend, and you have changed the way we interact with one another. Father, thank you for what you have accomplished through Christ Jesus. Help us, Father, grow in our understanding, in the depth of our knowledge of what Jesus has accomplished. And may we continue to celebrate that there is one God and there is one Lord and there is one spirit who has drawn us together. And, Father, it is you. Thank you, Father, we ask all this in Jesus name we pray. Amen.