The Curious Case of Phoebe

Recap Role of Reciprocity

Today is our last sermon in Paul’s letter to the Romans. Next week, we will take a look at what he has to say to the Corinthians again. Paul’s letter to the Romans is deep with theology. It gives a clear cut understanding of why we need Jesus, why He is the only One that can save us, and then gives advice on how they are supposed to live.

Faith Should Be Demonstrated in How We Live

Knowing and doing are two totally separate things. Our faith should drive us to some kind of action. That it essentially the main point of the last few chapters of Romans. You have the faith, now act like it. Do something about it.

Last week we looked at reciprocity in the life of a believer. Paul is taking a love offering he has collected from believers in Achaia, Macedonia, and Galatia and is taking it East to Jerusalem. The believers in Jerusalem have fallen onto hard times. The believers in these regions feel an obligation to the believers in Jerusalem because they know that if they had not been faithful, if they had not carried the gospel, the believers in the other parts of the Mediterranean would not have faith. Christianity spread because there were people in Jerusalem that knew they had the most important news to share. They did not fear what the Roman authorities and other authorities would do to them if they shared their faith. Instead, they shared. They had more fear of God than they did of man.

As believers, we are called into relationship. We are all humans, we are made in the image of God. God is a relational being. God is not some far off distant being that is disinterested in what is going on in the world. The deists make God out to just be a clockmaker. He set the world up and then walked away. That is not true, though. God has been involved with His people from the very beginning. He is with us today. The very God that rescued Israel from Egypt is interested in our every day lives.

Relationships Take Work

Relationships require work. If we want our relationship with God to grow stronger, then we must put the work in. God goes all in for us. He gives us 100 percent every single time. Do we give God 100 percent of ourselves? Showing up is not enough. We can’t just come to church on Sunday, sit in the pew, and then walk away for the week and expect growth in our relationship. That’s like paying for a gym membership, going into the gym, but never actually using any of the equipment, but expecting results. All that to say, we get out what we put into the relationship. If we want results, we have to put the work in. That’s just a fact of life. Reciprocity in relationships help to build those relationships. They help people grow together. There are times in our lives when we are going to be blessed beyond measure, at those times, we give out of our abundance. Other times, we are going to need help and some other brother or sister is going to come along and help, because they want to. When that happens, we can allow them to help!

Today we are going to plug through Romans 16:1-2

Romans 16:1–2 CSB

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church in Cenchreae. So you should welcome her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints and assist her in whatever matter she may require your help. For indeed she has been a benefactor of many—and of me also.

This sermon is called the curious case of Phoebe, but she is certainly not the only topic in this last chapter of Romans. However, I do find it interesting that Phoebe, a woman, is the person that is delivering this letter to the church in Rome. She is referred to as a servant of the church in Cenchrea. The Greek used in giving her designation as a servant is not doulos, the Greek for bondservant. Instead, the Greek is diakonos. Diakonos is the Greek for servant, minister, or deacon. It is the very word that we get our modern day deacon. The fact that she is mentioned is very interesting in light of some of Paul’s later writings and some issues within the modern day church.

The majority of the last Southern Baptist Convention centered around the of all the hubbaloo of where women fit into ministry. The issue first came to light several years ago, but this last year it came to a head. There are all kinds of resolutions they are trying to get passed to prevent women from ministerial positions. Many of the arguments hinge on what Paul wrote to Timothy. I am going to read it here and it is going to be controversial. However, this is in the Bible. I didn’t make it up.

1 Timothy 2:12 “I do not allow a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; instead, she is to remain quiet.” That is exactly how the Holman has it translated. This is the Scripture used to prop up arguments for having solely male people in ministerial positions. We would think it is pretty clear cut, but it brings up a good question. Why is it okay for her to bring this letter to the Roman church? Also, we find that it is not that simple when we read on in 1 Timothy 2:13–14 “For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and transgressed.” Adam was formed first. Yes.

That was the order of creation. This line about Adam not being deceived, but Eve being deceived is also kind of true, but Adam is not innocent in the fall of man. He is not a victim. Instead, he is to blame. If we go back to the fall of man account in Genesis, we see that Eve was not alone when she was talking to the serpent. We know how it goes, the serpent says “Did God really say?” Eve responds that God really did say, but the serpent convinces her God just doesn’t want her to eat it because then she will be like God knowing good from evil. Which begs the question, why she didn’t just ask the serpent why he doesn’t eat it. Anyway, I digress. Genesis 3:6 “The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”

Adam was there the entire time that interaction was happening. Never once did he intervene. Rather than jumping in and helping Eve, he just watched the entire thing transpire. If he had been a leader the way that he was supposed to lead, he would have stepped in. Instead, he just sits back and watches. He probably was waiting to see what would happen when Eve ate the fruit. When he saw that she didn’t die right after eating it, then he decided it was safe to take a bite himself and that’s when the trouble started. That’s when their eyes are opened.

Eve was deceived, yes, but Adam had no excuse. He failed to act, he failed to lead, and while some of the onus is on Eve, Adam owns a lot of that blame as well. When we see a loved one or friend headed to mortal danger, what do we do?

Love Leads to Action

If we go to the book of Judges, we find that there is a female judge. A woman that will help the Israelites overcome their enemies during their time between Joshua and having a king. Her name is Deborah. I have done a lot of study on her and most of the scholars I studied all assess the reason she became a judge was because there were no men willing to step up. Their assessment is that if a man had been willing to lead, then Deborah would not have become the judge.

So as the arguments continue within certain groups about females in ministry, I think the real question we should be looking at is why aren’t more men stepping up? When it comes to filling vacancies, there are two options, putting a person that is willing to do it in the position, or just getting rid of the position.

Romans 16:3–16 CSB

Give my greetings to Prisca and Aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus, who risked their own necks for my life. Not only do I thank them, but so do all the Gentile churches. Greet also the church that meets in their home. Greet my dear friend Epaenetus, who is the first convert to Christ from Asia. Greet Mary, who has worked very hard for you. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews and fellow prisoners. They are noteworthy in the eyes of the apostles, and they were also in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys. Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew. Greet those who belong to the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who have worked hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, who has worked very hard in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother—and mine. Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who are with them. Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send you greetings.

After this commendation of Phoebe, Paul then gives a lengthy greeting to the various acquaintances in Rome. One reason he is sure to give these personal greetings is that it prevents the letter from being a one dimensional letter. These greetings add a personal touch to it. When it comes to matters of the church, it should not be one dimensional. Again, it’s getting into that reciprocity that we talked about last week. If Paul had not included the personal greetings at the end, then the letter could just be considered a broadcast to a nameless group. That’s the exact opposite of what he wants. As far as our digital presence goes, we are working to make things more personal when it comes to the digital landscape. The goal is not to merely broadcast a worship service that feels cold and impersonal, but instead, we are trying to create community. It’s not just a matter of broadcasting information, instead we are trying to build relationships.

We get more clues about what the early church looked like based on these greetings Paul gives. He mentions 26 individuals by name, plus two not mentioned by name (Rufus’s mother and Nereus’s sister) , five groups of people, 17 men, 9 women, two couples, two households, five servants, two persons of distinction, three fellow Jews, two Apostles.

We see that the early church was extremely diverse. There were males, females, slaves, freedmen, Gentiles, Jews, well to do, well thought of. There was diversity among this group of believers. All kinds of people from different backgrounds that were brought together in the truth of Christ and His life saving work on the cross. Paul commends them all and tells them to greet one another with a holy kiss.

One thing we have not done here at this church, at least since I have been here and I’m guessing even before since it was not part of the service in the videos I watched of the services so many years ago is the little greet time that some churches do in the beginning of the service. Several churches that Dania and I belonged to had this time. It was the “get up and greet someone in the Lord today”. All I can tell you is that this was pure torture for any introverts that were in the room. So for some people it was awkward enough. Now I’m willing to bet that if we did that here, but I told everyone to greet each other with a holy kiss, then it will suddenly be awkward for everyone! The fact is that the kiss back then was a standard greeting. Depending on where you go in Europe these days, there are people that continue greeting one another with a kiss on the cheek. It’s essentially the same thing as a handshake or a high five. So when we have a handshake or a high five here at FBC St Paul, we are keeping in line with those same greetings among the members.

Romans 16:17–18 CSB

Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who create divisions and obstacles contrary to the teaching that you learned. Avoid them, because such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their own appetites. They deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting with smooth talk and flattering words.

Paul moves on to give more instruction about avoiding divisive people. This goes beyond what he was talking about earlier with the divisiveness over disputable matters. The issue here is that there are others that are going completely contrary to what they are being taught. These instructions go contrary to the Gospel. At this time, there was the gnostic idea popping up that essentially said you can sin in your body and do whatever you want since sin only affects the body, rather than affecting the soul. So basically, just live the way you want. Others were espousing that Jesus was a created being, rather than being with The Father from the beginning. This is the kind of divisive talk that Paul is warning against here. Jesus warned the disciples that people would come in His name and give false instructions. Matthew 24:11–12 “Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold.”

Do see similar things happening today?

I dare say we do. There is division all over the place. There are people seeking to disrupt and divide. In the digital society, these people are known as trolls. These people get involved in groups with the sole intent of just going in there and dividing people and causing problems. These trolls take different forms. In some of the groups I belong to, there are atheists that will break in there and seek to dismantle any arguments being made for Jesus. Their intent is to divide. What more would we expect? However, it is not just the atheists that will get in and troll. I belong to a Baptist group. What’s interesting there is that we get Catholics that will hop into the group and try to troll the members. One of their favorite things to do is get in there and tell us that we need an intervener and that is none other than Mary, the mother of Jesus. What’s interesting about this stuff is that these trolls actually wind up uniting the majority because it gives us the opportunity to witness to these people about our tenets of faith. Those divisive types are relatively easy to spot.

However, there are others that make it more difficult to spot. That divisiveness is more under the radar. 2 Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear.”

These types are more difficult to figure out since they come in the name of being a teacher. We’ve talked a bit about AI and the effect it is having on society. One thing this stuff can do is create relatively realistic videos. Well, humans being humans have started using AI to create pornography. Which then led to some folks beginning to boldly proclaim that the use of AI generated pornography is okay because it is “victimless”. Their theory is that no one is being exploited in the generation and viewing of this stuff. These people must have a very loose view of what it is to be victimless. Paul states in 1 Corinthians 6:18 “Flee sexual immorality! Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the person who is sexually immoral sins against his own body.” Hmmmm, so can these people really say it is victimless just because the images are just made up. I would dare say that if it is generated with the intent of creating a lustful response, it is far from victimless. The victim in this case would be the one viewing it. Any idea who had such a bold take on AI pornography? It was none other than editors of the notable organization of a prominent Christian publication. That’s the kind of division that Paul is warning against here. Don’t fall for the people that are bringing you anything than what the Bible has to say about it.

The Bible should be our lens in which we view everything.

Romans 16:19–27 CSB

The report of your obedience has reached everyone. Therefore I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise about what is good, and yet innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Timothy, my coworker, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my fellow countrymen, greet you. I, Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus greet you. Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages but now revealed and made known through the prophetic Scriptures, according to the command of the eternal God to advance the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles—to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ—to him be the glory forever! Amen.

What an amazing testimony about these believers in Rome. Their faithfulness has reached to everyone. Everyone has heard about the great work they are doing. These Roman believers are making their mark. Are we making our mark? Do we reflect the light of Christ in our lives? One thing I ask myself regularly about FBC St Paul is “If the church closed its doors today, never to open again, would the community even notice?” When the church is united and when the church is living as sacrifices to the LORD, others can’t help but notice.

Here at the end of the letter, we see that it was not Paul that physically wrote the letter. Instead, it was Tertius. He is the one that wrote the letter down. That does not mean that Paul didn’t write the letter. It simply means that he dictated what he wrote. Make no mistake, though, there are plenty of people that would say that Paul must not have written it or that Tertius took poetic license and wrote stuff that Paul did not say. That’s just silly, though. Paul would no doubt have looked the letter over before sending it on the way with Phoebe. Typically, the Commanding Officer of the ship never actually writes the evaluations or letters. However, he or she is the one that signs their name to it, taking ownership of the contents. Make no mistake, they must know what is in that letter because someone is going to come and ask them about it. It’s the same thing here. Just because the words were dictated to Tertius does not make this letter any less authentic as a Pauline letter.

Paul ends this letter by bringing Glory to God. Everything that Paul does is for God’s glory. Everything the Roman church does is for God’s glory. Everything we do should be for God’s glory. 1 Corinthians 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” People are smart. They can tell what we are about. The thing about life is this, we are not what we say, we are what we do.