Romans 16:1-16 – I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia. Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. Greet Philologus, 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 greet you.
Recently, Grace and I went up to the mountains. When it’s too hot in the Phoenix Valley, we tend to head up north to the mountains for a little bit of cooler weather.
One night, it was about 6 or 6:30 in the evening and we walked into a restaurant and asked for a table. To our surprise, she told us that they were about to close for the evening. We didn’t quite understand since they’re a restaurant, it’s dinner time, and restaurants basically do one thing – feed people food.
She let us know that they didn’t have enough staff to run the entire dinner shift. Since they couldn’t get anyone to show up for work and serve, they were going to have to close early. We went to a few more restaurants and ran into the same problem. It seems to be an epidemic in our country.
Meanwhile, look at the church of Jesus Christ. All across the nation, there are people serving and most of them are unpaid volunteers.
Jesus’ Church is the biggest movement of any sort or kind in the world and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is sustained by loving, humble servant volunteers. For a new church attendee, you may walk into a church and think they have a really large staff. The truth is that there’s a multitude of people who love God and love other people and volunteer to serve for free. The moral of the story is, people will to do more for love and for Jesus than they will for wealth.
As a pastor, I just want to thank not only those who love others and serve at The Trinity Church, where I have the honor of being the senior pastor, but those across the nation and world who serve their churches because of their love for Jesus. Pastors and staff couldn’t do the ministry they do without faithful volunteers, like those mentioned in this section of Romans, and I am forever grateful.
How has serving in your church been a blessing to you? If you haven’t started serving, where can you start serving your church to bless others and, in turn, be blessed?
To find the free Romans 12-16 digital study guide for individuals and small groups, hear Pastor Mark’s entire sermon series on Romans, or find a free mountain of Bible teaching visit realfaith.com or download the Real Faith app.