A recommendable woman

[Romans 16:1-2]

Have you ever written a letter of recommendation for someone?  Most of the students in our church's English Ministry probably know that I did not write the letter of recommendation as a senior pastor, but my wife did for those who needed to submit university applications or for those who were looking a job.  All I did was when my wife finished the letters of recommendation, I just signed them.  Haha.  Still, before I signed, I read what my wife wrote about the student she recommended.  And what I felt was that my wife had written a good recommendation letter.  The reason I thought so was because I thought that the brothers and sisters that my wife recommended are well drawn out and described well in English sentences that are commendable.  I even wrote a letter of recommendation myself.  However, the letter of recommendation I wrote was written in Korean. Haha.  But there was a ‘recommendation case’ (?) that I would never forget.  It was one day when an alumnus pastor of a seminary was looking for a place for ministry and asked me to recommend him to the pastor in charge of the church which he wanted to submit a resume in order to serve there.  The reason he asked me like this was probably because the pastor in charge of the church he wanted to submit a resume for was a pastor of our presbytery whom I knew.  But at that time, it was difficult for me to write the letter of recommendation, so I was unable to do so.  The reason was that I thought that the assistant pastor I was looking for in that big church and my alumni pastor were not compatible.  At that time, I was very uncomfortable.  Do you have the same experience as me?  Have you ever had a hard time recommending someone who asked you to do so?

When we recommend someone, why do we recommend them?  Isn't it because we acknowledge that person as much as we do?  When we see a lot of commendable parts in that person, don't we recommend him positively?  In today's text Romans 16:1, apostle Paul greets the saints of the church in Rome and says: “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea.”  As Paul is now finishing his letter to the Romans, he comes to chapter 16 and begins to say, ‘I recommend’ while greeting the Roman saints.  Then, who is the person Paul recommends to the Roman saints?  It is a woman named “Phoebe”.  In a word, a woman named Phoebe was a person whom Paul would recommend to the Roman church saints.  Who was Phoebe that Paul could recommend like this?  What kind of person was she that Paul recommended to the Roman church saints like this?  Today's text tells us in two ways:

First, a woman named Phoebe was “a servant of the church.”

A female disciple named Phoebe was a member of the “Cenchrea” church (v. 1).  The city of Cenchrea was a port city adjacent to the city of Corinth.  While Paul was writing the letter to the Romans from Corinth, he wanted to have Phoeberan, who served in the church at Cenchrea, deliver it to the church in Rome after he finished writing the letter.  Looking at the fact that Paul asked Phoebe, a servant of the Cenchrea church, for such an important task, we can guess how well she was recognized by Paul.

In this age we are living in, the harvest is plentiful but the workers are scarce (Mt. 9:37).  In other words, there is a serious shortage of workers in the church today.  From my point of view, you and I may have many church members, but there are very few church workers.  To borrow the words of a pastor, the number of church workers is only 10%.  That means that if there are 100 church members, there are only 10 church workers.  Therefore, we must devote ourselves to the work of raising up workers in the church.  So, our church is using this to raise up workers with Christ-centered vision.  In the midst of that, when I thought of the church worker of Phoeberan recognized by Paul in today's text, I remembered 2 Timothy 2:15 – “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”  Shouldn't we be raised up as workers approved by God?  Also, shouldn't we devote ourselves to raising up workers who are recognized by God?  Who is a worker approved by God?  This is the one who rightly discerns the word of God's truth.  Also, workers who are recognized by God have nothing to be ashamed of.  Shouldn't our church be dedicated to raising such workers?

Second, a woman named Phoebe was a helper to the church worker.

                    How do we know this?  Look at Romans 16:2 – “I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me.  When we look at the second half of Romans 16:2, Paul introduces Phoebe to the Roman church saints, “for she has been a great help to many people, including me.”  Here, the original meaning of the word “help” is “a patroness,” and Phoebe is described as a worker who devoted herself to helping Paul and many others with her resources (Friberg).  According to Pastor John MacArthur, female workers in the early church took care of sick believers, the poor, strangers, and people in prison (MacArthur).  When I think of the early church women who diligently cared for others like this, I thought of a gift that is very important and necessary for us living in the 21st century.  That gift is none other than the gift of helping one another: “And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues” (1 Cor.12:28).  The more workers who have the gift of helping in the church, the more they help many people like Phoebe, so the church can establish a community of love and shine a light in this dark world where love is growing cold.  When I thought of a woman named Phoebe whom Paul recognized, praised, and recommended to the Roman church, I remembered Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”  The reason this word came to mind is because the name “Phoebe” means “bright and radiant.”  Just like the meaning of the name Phoebe, you and I are God's light children who have to pay our debts brightly in this dark world.  Therefore, like the woman of Phoebe, we must become church workers serving the church, the body of the Lord, helping each other with the love of Christ.

                In today's text, Romans 16:1, apostle Paul recommends Phoebe, a member of the Church of Cenchrea, to the Romans, and in verse 2, he exhorts them as follows: ‘Treat Phoebe, the person I recommend’.  Look at verse 2: “I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me.”  What does it mean?  How does Paul exhort the Roman church members to treat Phoebe, a worker in the church at Cenchrea, whom he recommends?  We can think of it in 2 ways:

• Paul exhorts the Roman church saints to receive (welcome) Phoebe whom he has recommended in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints.

Look at Romans 16:2a – “I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints ….”  Here, “in a way worthy of the saints” is translated in Korean ‘proper etiquette of the saints’?  What does it mean?  A long time ago, an elder I know who lives in Korea told me that he wanted to write a book on Christian etiquette and asked me to find out if there were any books on Christian etiquette in the United States.  As far as I remember, the reason he wanted to write that book was probably because he thought we Korean Christians lacked in good manners.  At that time, I heard his words and thought it was interesting.  The reason is because I didn't think so important about the Christian etiquette.  Then, when Paul exhorted the members of the church in Rome to receive Phoebe, whom he recommended, with the proper etiquette of the saints, how is it the proper etiquette of the saints to receive Phoebe that was in a way worthy of the saints?  I looked for the answer in Philippians 2:29 – “Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him.”  We must welcome (receive) a worker (servant) like Phoebe or Ephephroditus with great joy.  And as Paul said, we must honor such workers.

• Paul's exhortation to the Roman church saints was to help Phoebe whom he recommended as any help she might needed.

Look at Romans 16:2b – “…  and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help to many people, including me.”  What does it mean?  The Greek literal meaning of this word is 'Stand by her in everything'.  In other words, when she needs help no matter what, be by her side and help her as much as she can.  Then, why did Paul exhort the Roman church members to help Phoebe by a worker from the church at Cenchrea?  The reason is because the woman named Phoebe helped not only Paul but also many of her brothers and sisters in Christ (v. 2).  Therefore, Paul is saying that it is desirable for brothers and sisters to help each other in the Lord.  Wouldn't God be pleased when brothers and sisters who have become one in the Lord like this, whether they are members of the Church of Cenchrea or the church of Rome, receive (welcome) each other in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and help each other with all their might?

                As I meditated on this word, I asked this question: ‘Is there a worker (a servant) in our church that I would recommend to other church members like Phoebe?’  As I asked this question, I prayed to God like this:

"Father,

Let everyone in our church become Christians recommended by God.

Just as God boasted about Job to Satan, please raise all members of our church

to be church workers that God can be proud of.

Please raise up all the workers who serve the church and help others

so that we can all become bright and shining saints like the meaning of the name Phoebe.

Therefore, when Jesus, the bridegroom who is the head of the church, returns,

please build it into a glorious bride church.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen."