Page 23 - January 2025 - Truth & Tidings

property is a stewardship from God, and Jewish backgrounds and uniting them
that your home can be a great blessing in His multiethnic Church; Priscilla and
to both the church of God and unbeliev- Aquila were in on it and grasped God’s
ers? We must not sin with sinners, but inclusion of Gentiles. They had experi-
we can eat with them, and we can do so enced the expulsion of Jews from Rome
at our very own tables. In one sense, the under Emperor Claudius, and therefore
citizens of our world have never been so became part of a predominantly Gentile
connected, yet they may never have been testimony when they returned to Rome.
so lonely. Hospitality does not need to be Romans indicates there was some measure
a performance in exceptional entertain- of conflict between Jewish and Gentile
ment; that can sometimes be counterpro- believers, but clearly Aquila and Priscilla
ductive in making others feel comfortable. were at the vanguard in how to work
“Hospitality is necessary whether you through that cultural diversity and enjoy
have cat hair on the couch or not. People unity; not only did they risk their necks for
will die of chronic loneliness sooner than Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, but “all
they will die of cat hair in the soup.” the Gentile churches” owe them thanks.
3
Their hospitality to Apollos also demon- That is a remarkable commendation for
strates a shared interest in the Scriptures. Jewish Christians. They gladly embraced
Again, note that Luke tells us “Priscilla believers of pagan, Gentile background
and Aquila” heard Apollos, and “they ex- and walked in the unity of the Spirit.
plained the way of God to him.” Priscilla They lived in multiple large cities (Rome,
may very well have been the more outgo- Corinth and Ephesus, at least) and always
ing of the two, and in a private setting she attached themselves to the people of God
contributed meaningfully in explaining and served them wherever they were, no
the truth of God to a ready learner. Sisters’ matter the cultural backgrounds. They
interest and knowledge in the Scriptures doubtless observed diverse environments
should never be brushed aside. and convictions among the churches in
which they fellowshipped, but that didn’t
Their Understanding of God’s compromise their understanding of unity
Mission to the World in the Lord. There is wisdom in what we
Recall that Priscilla and Aquila were have often heard – that unity and unifor-
with Paul during his crucial experience in mity are not identical in meaning or value.
Corinth when the Lord told Paul, “I have Unity conveys being joined together,
many people in this city” (Act 18:10). The believing the same thing. Uniformity
Lord was not merely saying there were a conveys identicalness – no difference in
lot of elect individuals; He uses a word any way. The former is a biblical truth;
that conveys “people groups.” It is akin the latter is a human arrangement. Pris-
to the language of Hosea 2, which Paul cilla and Aquila held tenaciously to the
references explicitly in Romans 9:25, “I apostles’ doctrine, knowing that the same
will call Not My People, My People.” In truth of Scripture worked in every culture.
that cosmopolitan centre of Corinth, the With Christian grace and wisdom, they
Lord was saving people of varying non- then applied its principles in a variety of
contexts. They are a model for Christian
3 Ibid, p.111 couples today.

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