Part of the Team
Part of the Team
The Apostle Paul is arguably one of history’s most influential people. He was a leader in the Jewish community even before he encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, but his impact was nothing short of profound after he became a Christian.
Paul was Christianity’s first missionary. On three mission trips, he shared God’s love with thousands, and many became committed followers of Jesus. A force to be reckoned with, he never lost sight of his primary goal of recruiting disciples for Jesus. Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was writing 13 of the 27 books in the New Testament.
Lest you think I am overstating Paul’s importance, here is how the Encyclopedia Britannica describes his impact. “St. Paul is often considered to be the most important person after Jesus in the history of Christianity. His epistles (letters) have had enormous influence on Christian theology… Although he held that Jews and Gentiles alike were called to be transformed into one new humanity in Christ, his missions were largely focused on the conversion of Gentiles, and Christianity would eventually become a largely Gentile religion.”
Many mistakenly assume that with his razor-sharp intellect and the power of his personality, Paul worked alone. However, any serious student of the Bible knows Paul consistently relied on others to help him accomplish his mission.
Let me share one passage that lists some who aided the Apostle Paul in his ministry. “3 Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in the ministry of Christ Jesus. 4 In fact, they once risked their lives for me. I am thankful to them, and so are all the Gentile churches. 5 Also give my greetings to the church that meets in their home. Greet my dear friend Epenetus. He was the first person from the province of Asia to become a follower of Christ. 6 Give my greetings to Mary, who has worked so hard for your benefit. 7 Greet Andronicus & Junia, my fellow Jews, who were in prison with me. They are highly respected among the apostles & became followers of Christ before I did. 8 Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, & my dear friend Stachys. (Romans 16:3-9, NLT, bold is my emphasis)
In those seven verses, Paul mentions nine important co-workers. Limited space prevents me from including the following six verses, which identify another 19 Christians with whom Paul worked. A few of these are named in other Bible passages, but most are not.
Even the Apostle Paul relied on others to help him accomplish his mission. This suggests that every believer has a role in God’s work, even if few know their names. We all have a task to fulfill in God’s kingdom, whether others know our names or we serve God without recognition.