June 8th, 2012
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

United in Christ

Please see the links to our EXTRA Bible Study notes at the bottom of the page.

Opening Prayer

Lord, may Your Spirit increase my love for You and energize my worship and my service for You each day.

Read ROMANS 16:1-16

[1] I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. [2] 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. [3] Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. [4] They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them. [5] Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia. [6] Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you. [7] 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. [8] Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. [9] Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys. [10] Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus. [11] Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew. Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. [12] Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord. [13] Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too. [14] Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them. [15] Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people who are with them. [16] Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“A great multitude … from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne” (Rev. 7:9).

Think Further

In the mid-1960s, my husband and I and our two children worked in Africa. We never phoned home but wrote many letters and sent home the slides we took. As far as communications go, we resembled Paul! I wonder, now that it is so easy to talk to anyone anywhere, whether our contacts with friends and family have become more sporadic and brief. In these verses we have a tantalizing glimpse of the Roman Christians Paul knew. Commentators who know first-century history have attempted to work out from their names who these people were and what they were like.

Some of them were wealthy and some were important. Phoebe, who heads the list, seems to be both—a church deacon, who supported a number of people, including Paul, and had the task of delivering the letter to Rome. Priscilla and Aquila had worked with Paul, teaching and ministering, and ran a house church in Rome. Some were Jews and some Greeks; some had names associated with Rome’s lower classes, possibly slaves; some had been Christians longer than Paul—Andronicus and Junia, husband and wife perhaps, were Jews with Greek names. Were they with the apostles at Pentecost? Is Rufus the son of Simon who carried the cross?

Paul often travelled with close friends and coworkers. Sometimes he had disagreements with them and they went their different ways. Some, he felt, had betrayed him, speaking out against him. But obviously he valued people, worked at his friendships, and praised and encouraged his co-workers. When this had been read in all the houses where Christians met in Rome, how did they react? Some must have felt reproved for their criticism of others, and giving each other a holy kiss must have involved reconciliation, an act of forgiving and being forgiven.

Apply

This chapter is a call to revise our prayer lists, use our phones and emails, and tell some people that we haven’t forgotten them.

Closing prayer

Father, what an immense privilege it is to belong to the Church of Jesus Christ. I belong to a world-wide family of believers. How blessed I am.

Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.

© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.

Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.

View all readings

Get ENCOUNTER:

in your email:

in Print:

Become a Member | Visit our store