July 27, 2020

1 Corinthinas 16:15-16
15I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)
16That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us, and laboureth.
My 4 year old son has a problem. He loves to play Super Mario Word on the Wii. This is an older game on an older system but it doesn’t matter to him. When he wakes up in the morning he asks if he can play, throughout the day he asks if he can play, before bed he asks if he can play. It is always on his mind. I think it’s safe to call this an addiction.
This passage tells us of another addiction. The family of Stephanas of the church of Achaia had an addiction to the ministry of the saints. This is not simply serving in ministry. Their mission was to help and equip those who were reaching others for Christ. These were people who looked for opportunities to help those ministering and jumped at the chance to do so. They enjoyed doing this to the point they were known for it. As my son thinks continually about his game, this family thought continually about this ministry.
Everyone is not wired this way. God made us differently with different gifts. He does however give us instruction on how we deal with them. He tells us to submit to them. Submit means obey, put under. Most don’t like being told what to do but, God tells us again in Ephesians 5:21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
I believe God gives us this principle. God leads the pastor, the pastor has people who God has put to help him, and the church is to submit to those who are serving. I believe that God is putting emphasis on what God desires for the church which is service with submission. Luke 22:26 But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. No one is more important than anyone else in the church, every believer is essential, but the way the church works properly is when we submit to each other. When we get this principle down, the church will experience unity. When the church experiences unity there is no limit to what God can accomplish through us.

Jacob Jarriel