Receive Her

Proverbs 28-29; Psalms 60; Romans 16

“I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea. 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.”

Romans 16:1, 2

How we welcome and relate to people reveals a great deal about our values. Paul commends “our sister Phoebe” to the church in Rome: first, as a fellow member of the family of God; then as a servant, or discerned deaconess or elder of the church; finally as a saint, or highly esteemed servant of God. Paul values God’s salvation and call on a person’s life as the basis from which the church should view them. He didn’t focus on Phoebe’s nationality, gender, net worth, or even her age. Rather, Phoebe was to be received “in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints”.

Is that how we receive others in the family of God, regardless of where they are from?

“Lord Jesus, welcome others through my life into relationships of trust and blessing in your family, for your glory.”