Turn with me to 2 Timothy chapter
4. 2 Timothy 4. Our text today will be verses
19 to 21. But let's begin reading in verse
one. 2 Timothy 4 verse one. I charge thee therefore before
God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and
the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, preach the word. Be instant, in season, out of
season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they
will not endure sound doctrine. But after their own lusts shall
they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears. and they
shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned
unto fables. But watch thou in all things,
endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof
of thy ministry. For I am now ready to be offered
and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good
fight. I have finished my course. I
have kept the faith. Henceforth, there is laid up
for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
judge, shall give me on that day, and not to me only, but
unto all them also that love his appearing. Do thy diligence
to come shortly unto me, for Demas hath forsaken me. Having
loved this present world and is departed unto Thessalonica,
Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia, only Luke is with me. Take Mark and bring him with
thee, for he is profitable to me for the ministry. Antiochus
have I sent to Ephesus, The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus,
when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially
the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did
me much evil. The Lord reward him according
to his works. Of whom be thou ware also, for
he hath greatly withstood our words. At my first answer, no
man stood with me, but all men forsook me. I pray God that it
may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding, the Lord stood
with me and strengthened me that by me the preaching might be
fully known and that all the Gentiles might hear, and I was
delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord shall
deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto his
heavenly kingdom to whom be glory forever and ever, amen. Now I'll
remind us 19 to 21 is our focus this morning. Salute Prisca and
Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. Erastus abode at Corinth, but
Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick. Do thy diligence to come
before winter. Eubulus greeteth thee, and Pudens,
and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brethren. The Lord Jesus
Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen. Now, I feel like I have something
to say for this Bible study, something very profitable for
the ministry, very, very profitable for the ministry. The Scripture
calls this work. That's what we call this. We
call it a work. The Scripture calls this work
that God's people are called to, The ministry of the word. That's what it's called in one
location. Acts 6, verse 4. It's called
the ministry of reconciliation. That's 2 Corinthians 5, 18. And it's called the ministry
of the saints. And all of that goes hand in
hand. All of that is the same thing. It's all involved in the
ministry. We minister the word, the ministry
of the word. We minister the word to the saints. Through that word, we declare
reconciliation between God and the saints. The ministry is God's people. It's concerning the chosen in
Christ, the redeemed by the blood of Christ. That's who the ministry's
to. That's what the ministry is.
It is God's chosen people. They are the ones who need the
word of God. You know, we need this word. They are the ones who need the
word of reconciliation. Every time we come here, we need
to hear of reconciliation between God and us. Our Lord defined what the work
of the ministry is in Isaiah 40. Turn with me over there to
Isaiah chapter 40. Isaiah 40 verse 1 says, Comfort
ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. He did not say comfort
this world. He did not say that. This unbelieving world, Those
who have no need for Christ because they don't see themselves as
being sinners against God. And let me just clarify something
really quick. When I say, when I'm talking
about the world, I'm not talking about everybody who's not in
church. They don't go to church because
they don't see themselves as being sinners against God, sinners
in the hands of an angry God who need reconciliation in the
blood of Christ. I'm not just talking about people
who don't go to church. I'm talking about people in church.
That's who I'm talking about, people in church. God right here
did not say comfort people in church. And the reason I say that is
because the average person does not see himself or herself as
being an absolute sinner against God. How could they see that?
They're in church, right? Those who don't need reconciliation,
that's not who the comfort goes to. How could you need reconciliation
if you're not a sinner against God? What do you mean? Me and Jesus have a good thing
going. Those who have their own self-righteousness,
that means people who say, I'm a good person. Yeah, I could
see me going to heaven. I mean, look at how I've lived.
Look at that person over there in the gutter on drugs and this
and that and such on and so forth. You see that prostitute right
there? God, I thank thee. I'm not as he or she is. Those who have their own self-righteousness,
they don't need comfort in the saving works of Jesus Christ.
They don't need that. They're comforted by their own
saving works, so they think. I think about this all the time,
and I'm gonna say something along these lines in the message in
a moment, but I wish so badly, I was driving over here this
morning, begging the Lord, let it be today. Even if it's just me, let somebody
have their eyes open today. Because it's gonna be so shocking
on the day of judgment, it's gonna be so shocking. People see me as a, You know, I don't know if it's kosher,
but the only word I can think of is freak. You know, listen to
what he says. He's always complaining about,
you know, sinners and God and judgment and what about love
and, you know, let's just talk about digging wells in foreign
countries and stuff like that. On the day of judgment, it's
all gonna be made known. All of this religion is going
to be burned. Burned, burned, burned. Religion is going to be burned
up. You say, I don't even know what
you're talking about. Get into this word. Preach the
word, preach the word. And comfort my people. Who are
your people? Sinners, sinners against God. You take a sinner before God.
who has been caused to know that he or she is a sinner against
God. You can't preach this word unless
you're a sinner. You can't believe this word unless
you're a sinner. You can't. You'll see it and
you'll say, I don't believe that. Well, then you're not a sinner.
If you were a sinner, you would believe the word of God. But you take a sinner who has
no hope outside of the finished salvation that's in Christ alone.
Not our works, but Christ's alone. You take the soul who is seeking
Christ and needs Christ and is hoping in Christ only. To that soul, God Almighty says,
comfort them. Comfort them, verse one. Comfort
ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably
to Jerusalem, that means to the heart of Jerusalem, and cry unto
her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned,
for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her
sins. That's amazing. He said, you
tell her for every sin she has committed against me, I've given
a double portion back of forgiveness. I've given a double portion of
mercy. I've given a double portion of
goodness and graciousness. How? in the death of my son,
in the blood of my son. You want to see God's goodness
to sinners? You look at the suffering deaths of Jesus Christ. You want
to see the mercy of God to sinners? You look at the suffering, agony,
and death and bloodshed of Jesus Christ on that cross. You talk
about a double portion The Lord God said, if you're
gonna stand in a pulpit, tell my people that. Okay, that is
the ministry of the saints from the preacher's perspective, from
the preacher's point of view. Ministering the message of God,
of his word to the saints. All right, now, this is what
I want us to see today. There's a ministry of the saints
from the saints' perspective also. There's a ministry from
the preacher's point of view. There's a ministry from the hearer's
point of view. And this today is an exhortation
to all of us as saints, me included, as brethren, as members together
and benefiters together in the preaching of the gospel. I've titled this Bible study,
The Ministry of the Saints. The Ministry of the Saints. And
it's an exhortation to us as a congregation. It's an exhortation
to each one of us individually to actively take part in the
ministry. If God has called you to preach,
great. But whether he has or he hasn't,
there's still much work to be done in the ministry of the saints. And I wanna bring that to our
attention this morning. Go back with me to 2 Timothy
4. Paul mentions nine names here
specifically in these verses that are our text. All nine of these people are
brethren in the Lord, and the Lord God recorded them
here on purpose. You have the same response that
I do when you first see verses like what we just read. You think,
why is that even here? Well, our Lord recorded these
on purpose. I just want to look at what we
can about each one of them. I hope this will be an encouragement
to each one of us. Look at verse 19. It says, salute Prisca and Aquila. Prisca is another way of saying
Priscilla. This woman is more commonly known
as Priscilla. This was a man, Aquila, and his
wife, Priscilla, who were very influential in Paul's ministry
and the ministry of other God-called men. Turn with me over to Acts
chapter 18. Acts chapter 18 verse 1 it says,
After these things Paul departed from Athens and came to Corinth
and found a certain Jew named Aquila born in Pontus, lately
come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because that Claudius
had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome. So they had to leave
Rome and they went to Corinth. And it says at the end of verse
2, Paul came unto them. And because he was of the same
craft, he abode with them, he lived with them, and wrought,
that means worked, for by their occupation they were tent makers. This man and this woman took
Paul in and they housed him and they fed him and they let him
work with them. and let him earn some income,
or maybe that's how he was paying his room and board. They were
tent makers, and apparently Paul had some experience in that field,
so they gave him a job. Now, this is what I want to,
as a side note, anybody who hears this, really for the internet,
anybody on the internet who hears this, those who are called to
the full-time work of preaching the gospel, they live on the
gospel. They are paid, they are supported for their labor in
the gospel. I am here. And a man who's called
full-time in the ministry, he should be paid the same salary
as the average man in the congregation he preaches to. He should not be expected to
go get another job. And he can't live, he just can't
live in the world without making the same amount of money that
everybody else makes. I don't know why people have it in their
mind that becoming a pastor means you're becoming, you know, some
hermit up in a mountain and you're not supposed to possess anything
and such on and so forth. I am paid very well. Okay, I am supported very well,
and that's why I say this so freely. But I want anybody else
who hears this, if you're a group somewhere, this is the year 2025,
all right, in the year 2099, if somebody hears this and they
want to call a pastor, don't call him and say, now we expect
you to go get a job. If you own a company, or if you
go interview with a company, and they're offering you a job,
okay, you're gonna come work full-time for us, you're gonna
commit yourself to us, but now we expect you to go get a job,
another job. It doesn't make any sense. And
the man won't be good at either one of them. And you need to
support the man who's in the ministry, okay? This is the job. and it's full-time labor, and
again, I'm paid very well, but it's just a side note. I know
that you say, well, now Paul was a tent maker. Yes, he was,
but here's what it doesn't say right here. It doesn't say he
was their pastor, and it also doesn't say they were even believers
at the time he met them. It doesn't say that. It just
says it's a man and a woman who were also tent makers. Paul knew
something about tent making, so the Lord brought them together.
And it does say in verse 4, he reasoned in the synagogue every
Sabbath and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. And when Silas
and Timotheus were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in
the spirit and testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.
He went into the Sabbath. into the synagogue every Sabbath
and he preached Christ. He preached the truth concerning
Christ. He preached who he was and why
he came and what he accomplished and where he is right now. He
preached Christ. And the next few verses here
say that there came some opposition and some persecution to Paul
for preaching that. But Priscilla and Aquila believed
it. And they sided with Paul so much so that if you look at
verse 18, Paul after this tarried there
yet a good while and then took his leave of the brethren and
sailed thence into Syria and with him Priscilla and Aquila. They went with him. They left
their home. They went with him. Paul, having shorn his head in
Sincreia, for he had a vow, and he came to Ephesus and left them
there. He left them in Ephesus. But
he himself entered into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. When
they desired him to tarry longer with them, he consented not,
but bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this
feast that cometh in Jerusalem. but I will return again unto
you if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus and
when he had landed at Caesarea and gone up and saluted the church,
he went down to Antioch. And after he had spent some time
there, he departed and went over into all the country of Galatia
and Phrygia in order strengthening all the disciples. And a certain
Jew named Apollos, born in Alexandria, an eloquent man, Mighty in the
scriptures, he came to Ephesus. After all that time, this man,
Apollos, came to Ephesus. Verse 25, this man was instructed
in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in the spirit, he spake
and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the
baptism of John. The baptism of John was a confession
of sin. A confession of sin. He knew the problem, but he didn't
yet perfectly know the solution. He did not yet really know the
remedy. Verse 26, and he began to speak
boldly in the synagogue, whom when Aquila and Priscilla had
heard They took him unto them and expounded unto him the way
of God more perfectly. That means more exactly, more
accurately, more specifically. What it means is they zeroed
him in on Christ. They zeroed that man in on Christ.
They expounded to him and taught him that Christ is every answer. Christ is every solution. Christ
is the end of every subject matter. Christ is what this word is talking
about. Christ is what this word is pointing
us to. Every demand that God requires,
Christ is the fulfiller of it. Christ is our good works. Don't
you have to have good works? Yes, Christ is our good works.
Christ is our righteousness. Christ is our satisfaction to
God. His punishment was our punishment. His death was our death. His
resurrection was our resurrection. His acceptance is our acceptance. His glory is our glory. Christ
is all and in all. Christ is all and in all. Priscilla and Aquila were not
preachers. But they were used to expound
and to teach Apollos that God's preachers and God's people are
determined to know nothing save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And what a use, what a use, what
a service to God's ministry that is. Turn over to Romans 16. Verse three, it says, greet Priscilla and
Aquila, my helpers in Jesus Christ, 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. Paul said, they've stood up for
me, they've stood up for this gospel that I preach. They've
been right by my side. At times when I've needed them
most. I can tell you from experience, there have been times when I've
needed a brother or a sister to stand by my side. For strength, for encouragement.
When you do, I can't tell you what that means to me. Can't
tell you. Paul said through their strong
standing in support of the gospel, support of other brethren, support
of other congregations, God's saints have benefited from it.
Ministries have been raised up from it. Apollos went on to be
a, I'm of Paul, I'm of Cephas, I'm of Apollos. So Paul said, I'm not the only
one who's grateful for them, grateful for them putting their
necks on the line. All the churches love and appreciate and thank
God for this man and this woman. Verse five says, likewise greet
the church that is in their house, whether that means they open
their home to the church to meet in it, or God ended up saving
their children and grandchildren. Either way, I pray that could
be said about me and you. I've been called to be a preacher
of the gospel, but I want to be a supporter of other preachers
of the gospel. And I want to be a supporter
of other ministries and other congregations that they preach
to. Come the end of this, and this
is, I don't know if I'll be able to finish this. But I pray we'll
all be encouraged and exhorted to take part in the ministering
of the saints. All right, go back to 2 Timothy
4. Verse 19 says, Salute Presca
or Priscilla and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus. This man Onesiphorus is mentioned
in one other place, if you turn back just a couple of pages,
to 2 Timothy 1. Verse 15 says, This thou knowest,
that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me of whom
are by jealous and hermogenies. The Lord give mercy unto the
house of Onesiphorus. or he oft refreshed me and was
not ashamed of my chain. He oft refreshed me. That means
brought a cooling to me, a cooling off, a cold refreshment. Whether
that's talking about a literal cup of water or a figurative
refreshing and encouraging of the soul. Either way, the scripture
says, The man or a woman who brings a cup of cold water to
a prophet in the name of a prophet will get the exact same reward
as that prophet. What is the reward? Christ. Christ. The water getter, the preacher, all the believers
he preaches to, everybody gets Christ. Same reward. Christ,
verse 16, the Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus
for he oft refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain. He was
not ashamed of this persecution for Christ. He was not ashamed
of my imprisonment for preaching this message. Verse 17, but when
he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and he found
me. The Lord grant unto him that
he may find mercy of the Lord in that day. And in how many
things he ministered unto me at Ephesus thou knowest very
well. He was not ashamed to the point
that he ministered to me everywhere I went. He ministered to me in
Ephesus, he ministered to me in Rome. He's been a true friend
and brother to me. And I want somebody to say that
about me. I want somebody to say that about me. I pray the
Lord will let me be that kind of brother to my brethren. Go back to 2 Timothy 4. I'm done-ish. Verse 20 says, Erastus abode
at Corinth. Acts 19 tells us that Erastus
traveled with Timothy throughout Macedonia. And I'm not sure whether
he preached or if he was just a traveling companion and encouragement
and support to Timothy because Romans 16 tells us what his occupation
was. I was gonna have you turn there.
Let me just tell you what it is. It says that he was the Chamberlain
of the city of Corinth. The Chamberlain was the treasurer.
He was the treasurer of the city of Corinth. He had a good government
job as an accountant. Good job. Huge city, huge job. Can you imagine the treasurer
of a city like Corinth? That's a big job. But even so, the Lord laid it
on that man's heart to give himself to the ministry of the saints.
We're never too busy. We're never too busy. I don't
care how big our job is. We're just never too busy. That
man took time to travel with Timothy through the churches
of Macedonia. to minister the gospel, to be
an encouragement to Timothy and all who preach to him. And this
is how it goes. You have a man who's called to
preach and he'll go somewhere and preach and others go with
him. And the whole thing is an encouragement. Everybody comes
back and they'll say, man, that was so encouraging. Verse 20 right here says, Erastus
abode at Corinth, but Trophimus have I left at Miletum six. Acts
21 tells us that Trophimus was with Paul in the temple one time
when Paul was drug out by the whole city and they tried to
kill him. And the Lord intervened with some soldiers. They came
in and they took Paul away from that mob, but a very terrible
incident. That man was right there with
him. Verse 21, do thy diligence to come before winter, Eubulus
greeteth thee. This is the only time Eubulus's
name is mentioned. The same goes for Pudens and
Linus and Claudia. But the fact that they were mentioned
as servants of the ministry is a great blessing from God. Just
the fact that he would mention them in that way is a great blessing
from God. And we would be so blessed of
God if we could be known for the same thing, even if we're
not known for anything else. Servants and supporters of God's
ministry, what a blessing. All right, let's close with 1
Corinthians 16. Verse 15. I beseech you, brethren,
you know the house of Stephanas, that it is the first fruits of
Achaia, the first believers that were called out of Achaia, and
that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,
to the love, to the support, to the help, to the encouragement
of the saints. He said, I beseech you, verse
16, that you submit yourselves unto such and to everyone that
helpeth with us and laboreth. I am glad of the coming of Stephanas
and Fortunatus and Achaicus, for the witch was lacking on
your part, they have supplied, for they have refreshed my spirit
and yours, therefore acknowledge ye them that are such. And the churches of Asia salute
you, Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord with the
church that is in their house. All the brethren greet you. Greet
ye one another with a holy kiss. Greet ye one another with a holy
kiss, a kiss of love and kindness and affection and The salutation
of me, Paul, with mine own hand. If any man love not the Lord
Jesus Christ, let him be anathema maranatha, cursed when the Lord
comes back. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
be with you. My love be with you all in Christ
Jesus. Amen. That's a real inspiration,
isn't it? That's a real inspiration. Let's
open our hearts to each other, let's open our homes to each
other, let's open our homes to other brethren that are traveling
through, let's support each other, let's encourage each other, let's
provide for each other, let's defend each other, all for Christ's sake, for His
ministry's sake, for the ministry of the gospel, the ministry of
the saints, amen.