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2Corinthians 8:5 says And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
1Corinthians 11:1 says Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
I am a non-preacher missionary. The Bible tells us of several non-preacher missionaries and what their job is on the mission field. They have a different, but just as important, job from the job of preachers.
Many preachers make the mistake of claiming that all missionaries must be preachers because this is taught by Bible Schools trying to get students. Yes, all missionaries need to know their doctrine as well as any preacher. Yes, non-preachers can profit from the education given by a good Bible School. However, missionaries are not always preachers.
The main job of Luke
was physician, not preacher. The same can be shown about others if we pay attention to the different words used to describe people and their true Biblical meaning. For an example, please see the note for Colossians 4:7-9 which identifies a missionary preacher but also shows how his identification within that epistle is different from the identification of the non-preachers.
For several years people, especially preachers, have told me that I could not be a missionary because I did not meet their religious requirements. That's like saying that Jesus could not preach and pay for our sin debt because He did not get the approval of the religious leaders of His day. When traditional Baptist doctrine disagrees with the Bible we are to reject the traditional doctrine and follow what the Bible literally says. Therefore, if we are to truly put our faith in the God of the Bible then we need to search what the Bible says in order to 'trust and obey' what it truly and literally says.
The last command that Jesus gave to the church, before He returned to Heaven, was 'The Great Commission'. (Please see the Study called Go Ye.) We read in the Bible that God gave this commandment to ye
('each and every one of you personally'). Therefore, we find that when we personally stand before the judgment seat of Christ
(Romans 14:10; 2Corinthians 5:10-11), that God will judge us personally for how well we personally obeyed this personal command from our God to 'each and every one of us personally'. If we do not personally obey this command then God will make us ashamed
and tell us personally, before all of Heaven, that our life makes Him want to spue
(Revelation 3:15-19). If we do not want all of Heaven to know this about us for all of eternity then we must personally persuade men
and be made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in (men's) consciences
.
all nations(Matthew 28:19),
into all the world(Mark 16:15) and only in Acts 1:8 do we read the detailed plan of God (
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth).
into all the worldand that non-preachers should only go to
Jerusalemor only to
Jerusalem and Judea. We find those limits being imposed by the leaders of the Jerusalem Church and God eventually sent the Roman Army into Jerusalem to kill all of the members of the Jerusalem church who taught doctrinal error and to kill anyone who held to this doctrinal error.
witnesses:
Jerusalem) and under close supervision of our home church.
Judea) with lose supervision of our home church.
Samaria) where we are on our own but can easily get help if needed.
Unto the uttermost part of the earthwhere we have to have a good enough relationship with God that we can get help from God because there is no other help near-by.
And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles.So it was the non-preachers who left.
Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.They did 'the Great Commission'.
Now they which were scattered abroadand Acts 11:21 continues with
and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lordand Acts 11:22 says
Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch.Thus we see that the non-preachers were getting people saved and doing the work of a church before Barnabas was sent to be their pastor. Obviously, the Jerusalem church would have no right to send Barnabas to be pastor if the church at Antioch had been started by a preacher-pastor.
And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.Thus we see that True Biblical churches are to have a testimony that not only affects their immediate community but should also reach regions around it. Such as testimony is actually a form of witness and doing true mission work.
salute).
For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.Thus we see churches starting other churches. Paul did not say that they gave financial support to preachers trained at Jerusalem. Nor did he said that they sent out preachers but said literally
from you sounded out the word of the Lord. This was written to the people of the church, who were mainly non-preachers.
we wentand some places we read
they went. Which indicates that Luke was on some mission trips part of the time but not there at other times.
brethrenin Acts shows when others were with Paul and the preachers on mission trips.
saint. (Please see the message called Called To Be Saints.) A
saintis defined as: 'a spiritually mature saved person who is actively involved in the ministry of the church.'. A
saintmust be capable and willing to be sent anywhere in the world by God and to win souls and start a home Bible Study if there is not a Bible believing church there already.
expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly(Acts 18:26) while they were still in their first church. The Bible records them as helping to start at least 3churches even though they were nit preachers. God expects everyone to learn their Bible well enough that they can personally spot and correct doctrinal errors. Bible School is not just for preachers.
after (his/her) kind. We also see this phrasing repeated in several other places of the Bible for a total of 25places with this exact wording.
the body of Christin Romans 7:4; 1Corinthians 10:16; 12:27; Ephesians 4:12. Within these verses we find that
the body of Christis living and is the church.
Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.That means that the church is alive since the cells of our body are living and together they create a living body. That is: the church itself has a life separate from the members of the church. In addition, Ephesians 4:12 says
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:. In context it is talking about
edifyingthe members of the church but this verse uses the phrase
edifying of the body of Christand not 'edifying church members' specifically because the church members are to be
edifiedfor the particular purpose of their doing a function within the church and their helping the living church as a whole. The Bible clearly teaches that the church as a whole is alive. Therefore, the church as a whole is supposed to reproduce
after her kind.
the body of Christwith
Christas the
head, the pastor like the neck (passing messages to the body) and the people being the body. Notice that 1Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4 both teach that every part of
the body of Christis important. That is: all parts of the body are necessary. From this we conclude that a new church needs all the parts of a body. One of the primary things that any new parent does is loon fort all of the parts of a new baby's body such as counting fingers and tows. Christ does the same thing. When a church is trying to birth another church it is supposed to take from their own body the members that are necessary to supply the required body parts of the baby church. The mother church is responsible to verify all body parts before the commissioning of the new church as an independent body. One of the main reasons that I have heard of churches failing in the Philippines is that they were made independent without the mother church verifying that they were self-supporting. That failure does not glorify God.
family of God. God wants the church to act like a godly family is supposed to act.
Priscilla and Aquilain Acts 18, Romans 16:3-4, 1Corinthians 16:19 and 2Timothy 2:14. 2Timothy 4:19 addresses
Prisca and Aquila, who appear to be different people unless
Aquilais the father and
Priscais a daughter named after
Priscillaor
Priscais a nick-name for
Priscilla.
Priscilla and Aquilaare a married couple (Jews) who Paul met when he first went to Corinth (Acts 18) and established a church there. According to 1Corinthians 16:19, they had a church meeting in their home, even though they were tent makers and not a 'preacher' or 'missionary couple'. Later, they traveled with Paul to Ephesus and stayed there while Paul moved on. After that, they
expounded unto him (Apollos) the way of God more perfectly(Acts 18:26). That is, they knew their doctrine well enough to straighten out a famous preacher. In addition, our current sentence says
Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles(Acts 16:3-4). Here were a couple of missionaries who proved that they were willing to die for their faith. They were active and influenced
all the churches of the Gentiles. They took the 'Great Commission' as a personal command from God, which it is, and literally took the
gospelto the entire world.
Priscilla and Aquila, in Acts 16:5 with
Likewise greet the church that is in their house.This should end arguments that someone has to be an ordained preacher to start a church. This is consistent with Acts 11 where we see the church at Antioch started by non-preachers. Continuing on with
Prisca and Aquila, we see that they had returned to their home city of Rome (Acts 18:2) and were obviously heavily involved in starting and/or building the church there.
in Christ Jesus. They were not preachers but they helped start at least three churches as recorded in the Bible.
Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, (were) Paul's companions in travel. He was a help in winning the lost to Christ. In addition, Acts 19:29 tells us that he was caught up in the religious riot at Ephesus where companions of Paul were beat, and, yet, he continued with Paul and was deterred by personal danger. We see this in Acts 20:4.
Aristarchusis called
a Macedonian of Thessalonica. He came from a very poor background and was still reliable with money.
Philemon) even though he personally came from a poor background and different culture. He was capable of being a blessing to all people of all backgrounds.
Demas:
Demaswas a blessing in the first two letters, he had abandoned Paul by the time that he wrote 2Timothy. Being a non-preacher is not a license to stop serving Go no matter what circumstances Go decides to put a person through.
Epaphroditus:
ministeringto the preacher. we also see that he was a
companion in labour(for the Lord), which is the job of all saved, preachers and non-preachers. In addition, Paul tells this home church to
Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness; and hold such in reputation: Because for the work of Christ he was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack of service toward me. Once more we see instructions to the sending church to highly regard, and follow, those people who actually go to the mission field and work for the Lord, even if they are not preachers.
Gaius:
Jason
faithfuleven through the test of physical and financial loss.
fellowlabourers. This word is used for non-preachers who are very active in the ministry. Mark and Luke, both authors of Gospels, are given this label.
Luke
Lukeis only mentioned in 2Timothy 4:11 and in Colossians 4:14 and in Philemon 1:24. However, he also wrote the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts. In Acts, we see he use
we wentwhen he traveled with Paul and
they wentwhen he was not on the trip. As a medical doctor, he was concerned with doing procedures in a proper order and he was concerned with the physical. Both the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts give us a time-sequential account which matches the orderly practices of a medical doctor. In addition, because of his personal profession, the genealogy found within the Gospel of Luke is the physical genealogy, which is through Mary.
Lydia
If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.We see the truth of this statement by Jesus in Lydia and others being kept in good doctrine by a heart to
do.
Mark:
Mark. Basically, he was a servant to preachers, and not a preacher himself. Because of his personal experience, he wrote the Gospel of Mark where
Jesus Christis presented as a servant. He went on the first missionary trip with Paul and Barnabas, but was not ordained, and sent out, as a preacher like they were. He apparently thought he was less important to missions and left when it got rough. This upset Paul who refused to take Mark on the next missionary trip. Mark apparently learned that non-preachers are just as important as preachers but have a different job. After he learned this lesson, Paul said that Mark was
profitable to me for the ministryin 2Timothy 4:11.
Onesiphorus:
Phebe:
Philemon:
Apphiawas supposedly his wife and
Archippuswas supposedly the pastor of the church in his home.
Stephanas:
Stephanasonly in 1Corinthians including the added note for 16:24, which claims that he was with Paul when Paul wrote this epistle. This person is only mentioned within this epistle. In 1Corinthians 1:16 we read that Paul remembers baptizing his household when Paul is not sure who else he personally baptized. Thus we see that he was personally important to Paul and a help to his ministry. Otherwise, his baptism would have been forgotten like the rest. In 16:15-16 we read that, within the church, each and every one of them should personally (ye)
submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us, and laboureth. That is: they should submit to people who had actually gone to the mission field and done the work of the Lord there regardless if they were a preacher or not. In that sentence we also read that
they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints. That is:
the house of Stephanashad completely given their lives to the ministry of helping newly saved to fulfill God's call to become
saints. This is a most neglected ministry today which is proven by all of the churches which are full of people who claim to be saved for several years even while they remain spiritual
babes. In 16:17 we read that
Stephanasand others went to the mission field to help Paul, who was their missionary. They were not a drain on him by demanding that he play tour guide or something similar but they went there to bring aid and to help in the ministry. Thus we see that
Stephanasis our Biblical example of what God wants non-preachers to do in the ministry, both in the home church and on the mission field.
Trophimus:
Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia unto Christ: (Romans 16:5). He went to the mission field as a non-preacher to get a job and help start a church.
Mary: (Romans 16:6). We are not told much more about this particular
Mary. However, since she
who bestowed much labour on us, and was at Rome helping to start the church there, we can assume that she also went to the mission field as a non-preacher to get a job and help start a church.
Andronicus and Junia: (Romans 16:7). were Jews (
my kinsmen) who worked with Gentiles at a time that Jews believed doing it would make them defiled before God. They let the truth of God correct their doctrine. In addition, since Paul reports them as
fellowprisoners, They apparently traveled with Paul and suffered on the mission field but did not quit. In addition, since Paul says that they were
of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me, they not only overcame their religious prejudices, as recorded for the Jews in the Jerusalem church, but they submitted to someone who came to salvation and ministry (
who are of note among the apostles) after them but whom God put above them.
Erastusand
Quartusare all mentioned together. While we can not make a doctrinal statement, if appears from the Bible that
Erastustraveled on missionary teams and provided for their physical and financial needs while traveling. He is mentioned as traveling with Timothy in Acts 19:22 and
abiding at Corinthin 2Timothy 4:20 where he was the
chamberlain of the city(Romans 16:23). Since
Quartusis mentioned in the same sentence with these other two, it is reasonable to assume that he was in the same ministry to missionaries.
Urbane,
Stachys,
Apelles, and
them which are of Aristobulus' household, are all associated with
Christ(Helping saved to spiritually mature after their initial profession) while
Amplias,
Tryphena and Tryphosa,
Persis,
Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren which are with them, and
Philologus, and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints which are with themare all associated with
the Lord(Teaching God's laws and future judgment): (Romans 16). We are not told anything more about these people but we know that they were non-preachers who went to the mission field to start a church before they called a pastor and that they taught a balanced message. The ones associated with
the Lordtaught God's laws and future judgment while the ones associated with
Christtaught spiritual maturity after people's initial profession. Thus, we see the two main points of the 'Great Commission'.
Euodias and Syntyche: (Philippians 4:2) did
labour with (Paul) in the gospelbut then started fighting each other. Even after we become important in the church we still have to be wary of pride and put the ministry before all personal feelings and desires. In addition,
Clementis only mentioned for working with these women
they that are of Caesar's household: (Philippians 4:22). Here we see non-preachers who went to the mission field and found jobs there so that they could start a church in a new city. Note that they went and won souls before they received a preacher.
Jesus, which is called Justus: (Colossians 4:11) is mentioned, by Paul, with Mark as a
fellowworkers unto the kingdom of God.
thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice: (2Timothy 1:3-5). These were the women who raised Timothy, taught him his faith and sent him to be a missionary. God does not call all non-preachers to be missionaries but expects them to raise children who are trained and capable to become missionaries. Further, God expects the families to send off any that are called and to give their blessings to the one who goes.
Carpus: He is only mentioned in 2Timothy 4:13 as holding a cloke that Paul left there. Obviously, he provided for Paul, within his own house, when Paul was in his city. Like
Gaius, he is an example of non-preachers caring for traveling preachers.
Eubulus greeteth thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia: We know nothing more about these people except that they were at Rome helping to start a new church before Paul got there and that they were known to Paul and Timothy (2Timothy 4:21). Like others mentioned as being at Rome to start the church, we can assume that they were non-preachers and that they were involved in the ministry enough for Timothy to care about them even though Timothy was elsewhere.
Zenas the lawyer: is only mentioned in Titus 3:13 as traveling with
Apollos. Once more we see a non-preacher traveling with a preacher and taking care of his physical and financial needs. Most often today, it is the preacher who is taking care of the non-preachers who travel with him.