Okay, who are some of Paul's co-workers? Let me just give you a list, and then we're going to settle in on two or three, maybe four of these, and look at them in a little more detail. But just kind of follow along. You know some of these. Some of these you probably don't know, or you know very little about. You have Timothy, who's Paul's son in the faith. I'd love to talk about and preach about Timothy. It would take us a whole message to do that. Then you have Luke. You ever think about Luke as Paul's coworker? Well, he was. And what did Paul call him? Maybe you're in medical field. Paul called him the beloved what? Physician. Then there's Titus. Titus I call the efficient organizer. Paul sent him to Crete to organize the church there, or the churches, and he did a great job. He also went to Corinth and dealt with some issues. Then you have Aquila and Priscilla. What were they? They were a couple, and they were tent makers, and we'll talk about them in a little more detail. Then you have a guy named Epaphroditus. He's called about five different things, but one of those is a fellow soldier. Was Paul in a battle? Absolutely. And so you have Epaphroditus. I'd love to preach about him. We probably won't have time to do a lot with him either. Then you have Epaphras. What do you know about Epaphras? If you had to take a test on these people, how would you do? Well, you probably would not do so well because we don't preach on them, we don't think about them very much. We read the name and then we keep moving. But Epaphras was an evangelist, probably started the church in Colossae and maybe he took the gospel to that whole area around Colossae and Hierapolis and Laodicea. But what does the Bible say about him? What does it focus on? It actually talks about him agonizing in prayer, Colossae. And then you have Mark. We'll talk about Mark a little bit later this morning. Then you have a guy named Justice. Paul says, he was a comfort, an encourager to me. Then you have a guy named Tychicus. I like to give information about Tychicus in the classes I teach, and I like to give a little test because it humbles seminarians. They know nothing about Tychicus. What do you know about Tychicus? Did you know that he possibly replaced Timothy? It's also possible that he replaced Titus. It's also very likely that he delivered the letters to Colossae in Ephesus. So he had a very important ministry. And just as important maybe as Timothy and Titus, but what do you know about Tychicus? Well, you probably don't know much. Most of us would be in that position. Then you have a guy named Demas. Talk more about Demas later. What do you think about Demas? What do you know about Demas? Well, you probably know Demas is not so good. Then there's these two ladies, Euodias and Syntyche, co-workers of the Apostle Paul. What was their issue? Well, they were at odds with one another. Does that happen on the mission field? Does it happen in churches? Does it happen in other relationships? Yes, it does. So we'll talk about them. And then you have Onesimus. He's not specifically called a coworker, but we find that he went from being useless to useful. Then you have a guy named Clement. Paul says he's shared in the struggle. Then you have a guy named Aristarchus, who was a fellow prisoner. Not just a fellow worker, but a fellow prisoner. So, in general, as we get into this, we find that Paul's co-workers included both men and women. It included both singles and those who were married. And it focuses mainly on those who are faithful to the gospel cause. You find out that Paul really appreciated faithfulness, and he deeply grieved over unfaithfulness. You also find that they varied in their gifts, they varied in their abilities, and they varied in their social standing. And you also learn that they showed love to Paul in many practical ways. A couple of them, it says, risk their lives for Paul. Are you willing to risk your life in the gospel cause? Well, there is a place for everyone in missions. So let's begin by talking about some of these in a little more detail. First one, and I really find that he's probably my favorite missionary, and that is Luke. So let's turn to Colossians 4. We're going to look at Luke as our first missionary today. You might not have thought of Luke as a missionary, but I think I can prove to you that he was. I'm going to call him, first of all, the single Gentile. The single Gentile. You know, many of the other missionaries were Jews. Paul was a Jew, Barnabas was a Jew, Mark was a Jew, but Luke seems to have been a Gentile. Can God use Gentiles? Well, I hope so, because that's what most of us are, right? But he was a single man. Most of the historians, and Luke himself was a historian, but most of the historians think he was not married. And that seems to fit, because the guy was on the go a lot. In fact, I'm gonna get to some of the things that he did, and it's really, his output is unbelievable. But he was a single Gentile. But also, and by the way, he's listed with Gentiles. I didn't read this, but Colossians 4, and beginning in verse 10, talks about Aristarchus, Marcus, and then it says Jesus, which is called Justice, who are the circumcision. And then it seems to talk about those who are Gentiles. It talks about the circumcision, those who are of the circumcision, and then Epaphras, and then in verse 14, Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas greet you. So he seems to have been a Gentile. He was also a cultured scholar. If you wanted to go to medical school back in Paul's day, where would you go? Would you go to the Medical University of South Carolina? Would you go to Yale? Would you go to the Mayo Clinic? No. There weren't too many medical schools around, but apparently Luke was trained at the University of Tarsus. There was a university in Tarsus. Tarsus might bring something else to your mind. Anybody else from Tarsus? David's shaking his head. Paul was from Tarsus. It's not out of the question that Paul and Luke would have known each other. It seems it's possible. We don't have any evidence of that, but it's very possible. If Luke actually attended the University of Tarsus, it seems he did have definite medical training. But I said he was a missionary. They'll have any proof for that. Well, he was with Paul. We know that. He spent a lot of time with Paul. He was with Paul. at the end. But go back to Acts chapter 16. A little phrase here that we need to note that I think answers the question, was Luke a missionary? I think he's a missionary just because he was with Paul a lot. And you're not going to be with Paul and not do mission work, right? You're going to be a witness, if not a preacher. But he might have been a preacher. Notice what it says in Acts 16. You know the story about the Macedonian call. But you normally relate that Macedonian call to Paul. But notice what it says. Verse 10, Acts 16. After he had seen the vision, immediately we... Who's the writer of this book? Luke is the writer of Acts. So he includes himself, he says, we endeavor to go into Macedonia, assuringly gathering that the Lord had called, what does it say? Us. Us. To do what? To preach the gospel unto them. So here you have the beloved physician Using his skills, no doubt, this is part of the reason Paul survived as long as he did. He had a great physician with him. But he says, we feel that God called us to preach the gospel to them. So Luke was a traveling missionary. He was a cultured scholar. He was a single Gentile, and he was the beloved physician. But think about this as well. Luke, and this could make a whole message as well, was the accurate historian. When you think about church historians, who do you think of? Well, you might not think of anybody. I mean, a lot of folks don't get into church history that much. But if you started reading, you would find that the earliest church historian, apart from Luke, was a guy named Eusebius. And he's the one who thinks that Luke was a single Gentile. But actually, the first church historian is Luke. How do we know that? Well, he wrote Luke. He wrote the gospel of Luke, but then he followed up that with the book of Acts, which is the history of the early church. Now think about this. When you read in the book of Luke, these wonderful, and we're coming up to this, these wonderful Christmas stories about, for instance, the shepherds out on the hill. Where else do you find that story? What other gospel? Well, you don't find it in any other gospel. What about Mary, that wonderful magnificat where she praises God, exalts God? Where else do you find that wonderful story? You don't. There's all kinds of information in the gospel of Luke that you don't find in any other gospel. How did he know that? Well, if you read his introduction to the Gospel of Luke, you find out that he did accurate research. He did detailed research. He talked, for instance, to eyewitnesses. How will we know, how would anyone know what happened with Mary and what happened with Elizabeth? Those details. He talked to the eyewitnesses. You say, well, I thought he was a missionary. He was. How did he find time to go and talk to these people? Well, I don't know, but he did take that time. So he gets all of this information, and he writes this wonderful gospel of Luke. And then he gives us the only history of the New Testament church that we have in the book of Acts. Now, let me ask you this. You ever thought about How much Luke wrote of the New Testament? You ever thought about that? Who wrote the most of the New Testament, would you say? Well, you have Paul, he wrote a lot. You have Luke, he wrote some. And you have John, all of those three wrote a lot. The fact is, Luke wrote more than any of them. Don't you appreciate this man, Luke? I mean, here he is traveling all over the place, taking care of Paul, going into these dangerous places. When you read about what Paul faced, you realize that Luke was with him in a lot of that. And yet, he has time, and he takes the time to be very accurate. In fact, he talks about giving a perfect record. Now, it's not, I mean, it is inerrant, but it's complete, because he did his research, and he is an excellent writer of Greek. So, Luke, the beloved physician, stands out in so many ways. I like to put it this way. He stands out for his humility. Do you know how many times his name is mentioned in the New Testament? Three. Three times. He doesn't talk about himself. Humility. He stands out for scholarship. I've already talked about that. He is maybe the best Greek scholar of all the New Testament writers. In addition to that, he's a great historian. He stands out for his faithfulness. He's very faithful in handling the Word of God. He wants to be accurate. He wants Theophilus. He's writing to Theophilus as he's trying to witness to Theophilus, trying to show to him that what we believe is very accurate and has all the facts behind it. So he's faithful to the Word, but he's also faithful to the Apostle Paul, faithful to the end. And then he stands out for using his gifts totally for the cause of Christ. And that's what I would like to challenge you with about Luke. Using the gifts you have totally for the cause of Christ. He was a medical doctor. Maybe you can use your medical background. Maybe you are an engineer. There are ways you can use your skills for the Lord's work. Now, we're going to transition to Acts chapter, let's go to Romans 16. We're going to be talking now about a couple. The couple is Aquila and Priscilla. If you would turn to Romans chapter 16. We can read about them in Acts chapter 18 as well, and we may get there. But I want us to talk about Aquila and Priscilla. Who are they? What did they do? What was their role in missions? Were they involved in missions? I think you would understand that, yes, they were involved in missions. And I'm not making this up. This is totally what God says about them. Notice in Romans chapter 16. Greet Priscilla and Aquila, then what does it say? My helpers in Christ Jesus. You might want to make a note in your Bible. That's the same word we've been talking about. Do you remember that word we talked about that means co-workers, workers with? It's that Greek word, sun means with, and ergos means work. He says, they are my co-workers. In what? He's not talking here about co-working in tent making. He's talking about co-workers in the gospel. So look at verse four. What are these people like? What have they done for the cause of the gospel? 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." And then notice this. What did they do, for instance, in the cause of the gospel? What did they do? Well, verse 5, likewise, greet the church that is in their house. So when you think about this couple serving God together, you realize that they were ones who were willing to lay down their lives for the Apostle Paul. What did they do that required them to do that? Well, it could be that they went with him into some dangerous places. It could be that they were exposed as they gave the gospel to some of the slum areas of Rome or Corinth. Maybe they were exposed to sickness. We don't know what it was, but it says they risked their lives. What is their background? We talked about the people with various gifts and various backgrounds. Aquila was a Jew, but it seems that Prisca, she's called Prisca in some text, Priscilla in this text, it seems that she may have been a Roman, so she may have been a Gentile. Their social standing may have been quite high. Paul worked with them on both his first, his second, and his third missionary journeys. And you know what their occupation was. They were tent makers. And that enabled Paul to survive financially. Paul is on the go. He has no clients, probably, when he goes to Corinth. How does he get work? How does he know who to make tents for? Well, Aquila and Priscilla already have the business. So they say, why don't you join us? Paul has that skill. And so he joins them and that's how he makes his money. In fact, it's interesting as you read it about Paul's tent making, you find that sometimes he wasn't able to earn enough not only to take care of himself, but even some of those in his team. And then other times he wasn't able to do tent making, but here they were helping him to survive financially, but they also were co-workers in the gospel. Any evidence for that other than that word? Well, let me remind you of a story, and you don't need to turn there, but your theme verse, is it up here? Yes. Paul says, I planted. But then who came along? Apollos. Well, how did Apollos know what to teach and preach? Well, apparently he was very eloquent in his knowledge and in his preaching of the Old Testament. But he was deficient in his understanding of the gospel. So how did he get straightened out? Well, he went to Bob Jones Seminary, right? No, he did better. He went to Paul's seminary. Right? Well, sort of. Because he actually was straightened out by Aquila and Priscilla. You know that story? Maybe I should show you that. Turn to Acts 18. Maybe you're not that familiar with that one. But Apollos comes around, He's preaching, he's watering what Paul has already sown, and he's an eloquent preacher, but he's somewhat defective in his understanding. Verse 24 of Acts 18, Verse 24, came to Ephesus. He was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, however, knowing only the baptism of John. He didn't really understand the gospel and all its implications and applications. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, whom, now notice this, when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him, who, when he was come, helped them much. which I believe through grace, for he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the Scriptures that Jesus was Christ. So here is this man who came after Paul, in a sense, kind of on the same level, but he has a defective understanding of some of the application and implications of the gospel. And so he needs some instruction. Who's going to instruct him? Well, you might say, well, maybe Barnabas can do that, or maybe Timothy, or maybe Paul, or someone else. It's interesting, isn't it, that the ones who instruct him are this couple. And as far as we know, in a very real sense, we could call them lay people. Their ministry, their work, was tent making. We don't know that Aquila was called to preach. There's no statement about that. In fact, sometimes Priscilla is listed ahead of Aquila. You ever notice that in the Bible? Sometimes it's Aquila and Priscilla. Let's see, how is it here in this text? Yeah, that's the way it is. But in other texts, it's Prisca or Priscilla and Aquila. Why would it put her first? Well, it could be that's a social standing thing, but it could be that she came to know the Lord first. And it could be that maybe she was even more capable than Aquila in expounding the Scriptures. She didn't preach publicly, apparently, but they took him privately, and they explained the Gospel more clearly. So, I find that very encouraging for people who are not called and sent as official missionaries. These people were just like most of you, except that they had a real passion, and hopefully I shouldn't use the word except, right? Hopefully you have that too. They had a real passion for God's work and for the spread of the gospel and for a right understanding of the Bible. So, serving God together. They were tent makers, but they were able to teach and actually instruct this man that the Bible holds up as a great preacher, and one who had a very effective ministry. Do you think their help to him caused his ministry to be much better? I would say absolutely. Now, if you would, let's turn to Philippians chapter 4. and look at some other of Paul's co-workers. Philippians chapter 4. Paul writes this in verse 1. Therefore, my brethren, dearly beloved, and long for my joy and crown. So stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved. Now, he says, I beseech, I urge, I exhort, you odious, and I beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord. And I entreat thee also, true yoke fellow, help those women, seems to be a reference back to those two ladies, and maybe others, which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other, notice what he calls them, my fellow laborers, whose names are in the book of life. So verse two, Iodias and Syntyche, he urges them to be of the same mind. What does that imply? It implies that they were not of the same mind. There was a disunity here between these two ladies. Now, what was the cause of the disunity? What was the lack of unity here in their thinking? Was it doctrine? Well, it doesn't seem to be that because if that's the case, Paul would tell one or the other of them to, you know, get the doctrine right. Doesn't seem that it was a doctrinal thing. You know, that's the case in most cases. It's not doctrinal issues that people get stirred up about and get out of sorts about and, you know, at odds with one another. It's usually not doctrine. That doesn't seem to be the case. What could it have been? Just kind of imagine. What kind of things cause two ladies to be at odds? Well, it could be just the way of doing a church activity. It could be the way you're doing the international dinner. I mean, I'm hoping that's not the case. I'm not, I don't know anything, okay? Totally ignorant about that. But it could be something like that. It could be just a minor disagreement that they didn't get squared away and eventually it became more of a disagreement, became harsh words. It could be jealousy. One of them's getting more attention than the other. Could be envy, could be those kinds of things. But here's what's sobering. The whole church knows about this. If they didn't know about it before, they know about it now because Paul wrote about it and everybody for the rest of eternity knows about it. Right? Isn't that true? So he says, Not only does the church know about it, he knows their names. And it seems in this context that Paul is actually entreating someone else to help out, help them. Because verse three, I entreat thee, true yoke fellow, whoever that is, we don't know, help those women. Help those women which labored with me. Help them get this straightened out. Coworkers lacking harmony. So what's the result of that sort of thing? Well, it's a loss of blessing in their lives, and probably in the church as well. Definitely a loss of joy, and it certainly is even harmful to the church. So what do they need? What do these ladies need? Here we're talking about Paul's co-workers. He calls them fellow laborers. What do they need? Well, they need to recognize the problem and accept the exhortation. He says, help them. So they need to accept this help. They need to understand and practice love, and they need to seek that harmony. But what I find interesting, too, and this is encouraging to me, hopefully to you, is that Paul, as he exhorts them, also praises them. Did you catch the praise? Look at verse 3. That's where the praise is. Help those women, what does he say about them? Who labored with me in the gospel. That word labor is a strong word. They strove together with me. They were like athletes. That's actually the word used here. They were like athletes. They were giving their all in the cause of the gospel. I praise them for that. These were great ladies. They just need to get this thing settled between them. And then the work can go forward. And God had really blessed the work in Philippi, right? There's hardly any church that Paul praises more than the Philippians. They were just excellent, excellent church in so many ways. So you have here women who are co-workers but lacking harmony. Well, I want to conclude this session with a reference in the book of Philemon. If you would turn to the book of Philemon. It's over there just before Hebrews. So the book of Philemon. We could talk about Philemon himself. I think he was like, well, Paul calls him, verse 1. Philemon, our dearly beloved, and what does it say? Our fellow laborer. That's the same word we're talking about. So Philemon was one of those fellow laborers. I'm not going to talk about Philemon, though. We could. But just a quick note about him is that he The thing that stands out about him the most is that Paul really loved him and exhorts him about something because he knows Philemon's love will get what he's asking for. So what is Paul asking of Philemon? Well, here's the story. You probably know the story. Philemon had a slave. Okay, you say, well, can a slave do anything in missions? Answer is yes, a slave can do something in missions. This was a runaway slave. He had been serving Philemon and he left. Apparently when he left, he took, maybe took some money with him. So he was, the Bible says, a useless slave. Actually, probably worse than useless. He was harmful to Philemon. But, something happened to Onesimus. Somehow, he got connected with Paul when Paul was in Rome, and apparently got saved at that time. Now, let's begin reading. Verse 9, yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such in one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ. I beseech thee, so here's his request to his co-worker Philemon, I beseech thee for my son Onesimus. Hmm. Son? Well, we know that Paul talks that way about spiritual sons, and that obviously is what is the case here. Onesimus has become Paul's spiritual son. So evidently, Onesimus, he must have sought Paul out. Maybe he got under conviction and heard that Paul was in Rome, and he sought him out in prison. And Paul led him to Christ. Because he says, whom I have begotten in my bonds, which in time past was to thee useless, unprofitable, but now, notice, profitable to thee, but also to the missionary, to me, whom I have sent again. Okay, Paul's in Rome. He needs Onesimus. Onesimus is profitable to him. He's useful to him as a missionary who's in prison. But Paul says, OK, I could use him here, but I'm sending him back to you. Why? Well, he wants him to make things right. I've sent him again, therefore receive him. That is, mine own bowels. He's become so close to Paul that Paul considers him part of his own body. He says, so useful to me. Whom I would have retained with me, I would have loved to have kept him. In thy stead he might have ministered unto me in the bonds of the gospel. See, he's useful in missions. But without thy mind would I do nothing, that thy benefit should not be as it were of necessity, but willingly. For perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him forever. Now his standing with you has changed. not now as a servant, not as a slave, but now above a servant. He's a brother, beloved, especially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh and in the Lord? If thou count me therefore a pardoner, receive him as myself. If he hath wronged thee or oweth thee aught, put that on my account." Onesimus is a useful slave. Let me rephrase that. He was a useless slave. Now he is a useful brother. So as we conclude this session and think about the kinds of workers that God used in missions. They were co-workers of the Apostle Paul. Most of these are specifically called that. If they're co-workers, that means they're part of the mission's effort, right? They're not sent missionaries, but they are co-workers. There's a place for all of these people. Their gifts, their backgrounds, their training, their responsibilities differ. But they had this in common. They were laboring in and for the gospel. You have Luke, the beloved physician. You have Aquila and Priscilla, this couple united in the cause of the gospel. You have Euodias and Syntyche striving together in the gospel, and yet having something between them. And then you have a guy like Onesimus, a useless slave who became a useful brother. I hope that you all will become useful in missions. And you can be. You can be just like these folks. Whatever your gifts, whether you're single, whether you're married, whether you're a slave, whether you're an engineer, whether you're a teacher, whether you're a mom, you can be useful in God's work. Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for the example of these people. We know that you used them in the cause of the gospel. They were co-workers with the Apostle Paul in a very real sense. We pray for those sitting here in the audience today that you would make each one, regardless of age, gender, background, training, gifts, make them useful in your work and in your kingdom. And we pray it in Jesus' name. Amen.