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00:00 Nehemiah chapter 2, find verse 11.
00:07 When you have it, say, "I have it."
00:14 And we're going to look at two chapters specifically in Nehemiah.
00:19 It's very fitting for the subject matter we are covering and, of course, for where we
00:28 as a ministry are headed.
00:31 Nehemiah 2, 11.
00:34 And let me start reading now.
00:35 It says, "So I came to Jerusalem and was there how many days?
00:43 Three."
00:44 I think we all know a lot can be accomplished for the kingdom in three days.
00:51 "I came to Jerusalem and was there three days, then I arose in the night, I and a few men.
01:06 A few men with me, I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem, nor
01:14 was there any animal with me except the one on which I rode.
01:20 And I went out by night through the valley gate to the serpent's well and the refuse
01:27 gate and viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were
01:33 burned with fire."
01:37 This is a blow to the city of God.
01:41 It says, "Then I went to the fountain gate and to the king's pool, but there was no room
01:47 for the animal under me to pass.
01:51 So I went up in the night by the valley and viewed the wall.
01:54 Then I turned back and entered by the valley gate and so returned.
02:00 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done.
02:03 I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the others who
02:09 did the work."
02:10 Look at verse 17.
02:11 "Then I said to them, 'You see the distress we're in?'"
02:18 He has observed some things about the holy city.
02:26 Gates broken down and burned with fire.
02:31 Wall devastated.
02:35 He says to them, again in verse 17, "You see the distress that we are in.
02:45 How Jerusalem lies waste and its gates are burned with fire.
02:53 Come let us do something about it.
02:57 Come let us build the wall of Jerusalem that we may no longer be a reproach.
03:05 And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good to me and also of the king's
03:10 words that he had spoken to me.
03:13 So they said, 'Let us rise up and build.'
03:18 Then they set their hands to this good work."
03:24 I believe at its core, Crenshaw Christian Center has both done and is a good work.
03:35 So I say, let us rise up and build.
03:42 But there's always a hater in close proximity.
03:50 Verse 19, "But when," somebody's always hearing about it.
03:59 This is why.
04:00 I've said it before.
04:02 I'll say it again, but I'm going to add something to it today.
04:06 You need to be very cautious of who you let hear what you're believing for, what you're
04:15 confessing, what you allow to come out of your mouth, because not everyone is in agreement
04:22 with you.
04:24 Not everyone is believing like you.
04:28 Need to be cautious of your company.
04:32 But at the same time, you do want the adversary to hear what you're proclaiming according
04:39 to the word of God.
04:40 And verse 19, it says, "But when Samballot the Horonite," an adversary of Israel, "Tobiah
04:49 the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and they despised us
04:59 and said, 'What is this thing that you're doing?
05:02 Will you rebel against the king?'
05:04 So I answered them and said to them, 'Be ready, saints, to have an answer when your opponents
05:14 question, laugh at, and despise your focus.'
05:20 So I answered them and said to them, 'The God of heaven himself, this ain't got nothing
05:23 to do with you, hater.'"
05:29 And when I say "hater," see, I'm not talking about fellow believers.
05:33 It's sad when fellow believers hate on each other.
05:35 But we need to recognize, according to the Scriptures, we are the household of God and
05:39 we have no business being in disharmony.
05:43 True haters are everyone outside of the flock of Christ.
05:48 And that's what we have right here.
05:49 That's what we're reading about right here.
05:51 "And Ammiah and his group, his militia of fellow Jews said, 'What?
06:04 Let's rise up and build.'
06:05 And then enemies of Israel heard and despised and laughed."
06:11 Verse 20, "So I answered them and said to them, 'The God of heaven himself will prosper
06:15 us; therefore we, his servants, will arise and build.
06:19 But you, opponent, you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.'
06:27 Nehemiah walked around.
06:30 He didn't like what he saw.
06:32 So he gathered to himself those whom he knew he could trust, whom he knew would buy into
06:39 the vision.
06:41 And they said, 'Let us rise up and build.'"
06:47 Go to chapter 4.
06:50 Nehemiah chapter 4.
06:58 And let's take it a step further.
07:00 It says, "But it so happened when," here he is again, "when Sanballat heard that they
07:10 were rebuilding the wall."
07:12 And by the way, in the third chapter, you get an entire chapter of every Jew who contributed
07:19 to the building and repairing of the wall and other parts of Jerusalem that had been
07:25 devastated.
07:26 They all stepped up to the plate.
07:28 Some of them built, some of them repaired.
07:31 But they all stepped up.
07:33 And then we get to chapter 4, and the haters are at it again.
07:38 "When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was furious and very indignant,"
07:44 and what did he do?
07:45 He mocked the Jews.
07:48 And he spoke before his brethren and the army of Samaria and said, "What are these feeble
07:53 Jews, these weak Jews doing?
07:56 Will they fortify themselves?
07:59 Will they offer sacrifices?
08:01 Will they complete it in a day?
08:03 Will they revive the stones from the heaps of rubbish?
08:07 Jews that are burned?"
08:10 And now, Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, "Whatever they build, if even
08:14 a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall."
08:19 They don't believe the Jews can pull this off.
08:24 They don't believe that whatever they do pull off will be able to stand and remain.
08:32 Verse 4, "Hear, O our God, for we are despised."
08:36 This is what God's elect is saying.
08:38 "Turn their reproach on their own heads and give them as plunder to a land of captivity."
08:45 He says, "Don't cover their iniquity and do not let their sin be blotted out from before
08:50 you for they have provoked you to anger before the builders."
08:55 Once again, they're praying this about blatant enemies of God.
09:01 And in the world today, there are those who are blatant enemies of the church.
09:07 They are enemies, they are despising us, and they are mocking us.
09:15 Let God handle them.
09:20 Look at verse 6.
09:21 I love this scripture.
09:24 So here's what we did.
09:26 We built the wall and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height.
09:33 Favorite part of the verse, "For the people had a mind to work."
09:40 Where are my people that have a mind to work?
09:46 Because remember, remember why Jesus gave gifts to the church in the first place.
09:54 For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry.
10:02 For ministry to be worked, saints have to be equipped, but those same saints also must
10:07 have a mind to work.
10:12 This is not what happened when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the
10:16 Ashdodites, Philistines, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps
10:24 were beginning to be closed, they became very angry.
10:31 When the world sees what God is doing through the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, they
10:36 get angry.
10:37 When they see what He's doing and what He's doing through the church and the earth is
10:41 working, His adversaries or our adversaries get angry.
10:47 It says, "And all of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create,"
10:51 what?
10:52 "Confusion."
10:53 The book of James tells us where confusion is, every evil thing is.
10:58 "Nevertheless, we made our prayer to our God and because of them we set a watch against
11:03 them day and night."
11:07 It gets better because not only were repairs of the breach and builders identified, so
11:17 were watchmen.
11:19 And the watchmen are the ones who are constantly sober and vigilant, guarding the fortress,
11:29 standing the stronghold, giving a heads up to the city that adversaries are on the way.
11:38 Look at this, "Nevertheless, we made our prayer to our God and because of them we set
11:41 a watch against them day and night.
11:44 Then Judah said, 'The strength of the laborers is failing and there is so much rubbish that
11:49 we are not able to build the wall.'
11:51 And our adversaries said, 'They will neither know nor see anything, till we come into their
11:57 midst and kill them and cause the work to cease.'"
12:00 The adversary wants to stop the work.
12:04 So it was when the Jews who dwelt near them came and they told us ten times, "From whatever
12:10 place you turn, they will be upon us."
12:13 What are they pointing out?
12:14 They're saying, "We're all focused on building and the enemies are coming."
12:22 So look what Nehemiah says, look what Nehemiah does.
12:25 Verse 13, "Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall at the openings
12:34 and I set the people according to their families with their swords, their spears and their
12:39 bows."
12:40 Wait a minute, I thought we were building something.
12:44 What do I need a sword for?
12:46 What do you need a spear for?
12:48 Why do they need bows?
12:51 Verse 14, "And I looked and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders and to the rest
12:56 of the people, 'Do not be afraid of them.
13:00 Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters,
13:03 your wives and your houses.'"
13:06 And it happened when our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had brought
13:10 their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work.
13:18 So it was from that time that half of my servants worked construction while the other half held
13:27 the spears, the shields, the bows and they wore armor.
13:32 And the leaders were behind all the house of Judah.
13:36 Those who built on the wall and those who carried burdens loaded themselves so that
13:41 with one hand they worked at construction and with the other they held a weapon.
13:50 So it appears that some of you build, some of you war, and some of you do both.
14:02 Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built.
14:08 And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me.
14:10 And then I said to the nobles, the rulers and the rest of the people, "The work is great
14:15 and extensive and we are separated far from one another on the wall.
14:19 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there.
14:24 Our God will fight for us."
14:28 So we labored in the work and half of the men held the spears from daybreak until the
14:33 stars appeared.
14:35 At the same time, I also said to the people, "Let each man and his servant stay at night
14:40 in Jerusalem that they may be our guard by night and a working party by day."
14:46 So neither I, my brethren, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me took
14:51 off our clothes except that everyone took them off for washing.
14:56 The wall needed to be rebuilt.
15:00 Nehemiah said, "It's going to get built.
15:03 So I'm going to find those who are willing to labor with me and build."
15:08 And he gathered his group.
15:11 He gathered his remnant.
15:13 He gathered his army.
15:15 And the Bible tells us that they all had a mind to work.
15:22 The ministry must be worked.
15:25 That is the only way the body of Christ will be edified.
15:29 And you have to find out where you can plug in because remember, Paul already made it
15:35 very clear to us that we are the ones who bestow less honor on certain parts or certain
15:44 responsibilities.
15:47 We are the ones who esteem them less.
15:50 We believe them to be weaker.
15:53 It's not that they are weaker.
15:56 We just think that.
15:58 Some of us think that there's nothing that we can contribute because you're not standing
16:03 up here singing and leading us in worship.
16:06 You figure if you're not doing that, if I'm not doing what the pastor is doing, if I'm
16:10 not being an usher or a hostess, they clearly don't need my help.
16:14 What can I contribute?
16:15 Oh no, every part is necessary.
16:20 And when every joint supplies and does their share, it automatically causes growth of the
16:27 body.
16:28 The Bible in context was referring to the whole body of Christ, but if that model is
16:34 applied to every local group of believers, then it will work effectively amongst that
16:40 local group of believers.
16:42 Meaning if everyone here at Crenshaw Christian Center and Ever-Increasing Faith does their
16:47 part, supplies their share, it'll cause growth of Crenshaw Christian Center and Ever-Increasing
16:54 Faith.
16:55 Let us make sure that we all have a mind to work.
16:58 Let us make sure that we know if we're builders only.
17:01 Let us make sure that we know if we're warriors only, or let us make sure if we know that
17:05 while we build our gun, our sword is on our side.
17:18 This can't be done without help.
17:24 What did Jethro tell Moses?
17:27 You're gonna wear yourself out.
17:29 You're gonna wear the people out.
17:30 You can't do all of this by yourself.
17:36 When the Queen of Sheba came to see Solomon, she saw helps ministry in full operation.
17:45 She wasn't just impressed by the man himself.
17:49 She was impressed with his whole operation.
17:54 And here's the thing.
17:55 You know, you know one of the main things that visitors tell us, Crenshaw Christian
17:59 Center, about their experience here?
18:01 They tell us about all of y'all.
18:05 Every worker, every volunteer, how they were greeted, the level of kindness and love that
18:11 they experienced when they came here.
18:14 All we're gonna do is just build on that.
18:17 We're just gonna increase and get better.
18:24 Go now to the New Testament.
18:27 Find Philippians chapter 4.
18:30 Philippians chapter 4.
18:31 Now we're gonna read a couple scriptures.
18:33 The focus is on help.
18:35 We're talking about help.
18:36 I will be tempted to deviate into women in ministry as well as talking about apostleships,
18:46 but I'm going to restrain myself so that we can remain focused on our subject matter.
18:55 I'll cover what's read in scripture, but I won't expound because if I do, we'll be in
19:03 another solar system and I must stay focused.
19:09 But go to Philippians chapter 4.
19:14 Philippians 4 verse 2.
19:17 As I said, when it comes to the Old Testament, especially when Israel was governed by judges,
19:23 well beginning with one leader, Moses, then Joshua, and then a number of judges, and then
19:29 kings, clearly there are aspects of the kingdom of Israel that we as the church can learn
19:37 from and glean from and borrow from.
19:40 But as I've said before, it's not always apples to apples.
19:43 It's not an exact parallel because when it comes to the church of the Lord Jesus Christ,
19:48 our setup is a little bit different in that what?
19:51 We are the church living in the kingdom of God.
19:54 And while we are the church living in the kingdom of God simultaneously because we're
19:59 identified with Christ, all of us are kings.
20:03 All of us.
20:06 Whoever professes the name of Jesus is a king.
20:09 So we need to go to the New Testament and see how help worked under this covenant.
20:13 This is the covenant that we're under, the new and better covenant established on better
20:18 promises.
20:19 Now, we've already also established in 1 Corinthians 12 that help's ministry was ordained
20:23 of God.
20:27 Helps and administrations comes out of the government or office or ministry gift of the
20:33 pastor.
20:35 A pastor can't pastor, a bishop can't bishop, an elder can't elder, an overseer can't oversee,
20:42 a shepherd can't shepherd unless he has help.
20:50 Unless he or she has help.
20:54 Look here, Philippians 4, 2, Paul's writing to the Philippian church.
20:59 Remember the Philippian church, the church in Macedonia, they were Paul's financial remnant.
21:12 They took care of him and aided him in ministry unlike any other church.
21:18 And here in chapter 4 verse 2, he's writing, he says, "I implore."
21:23 Anyone have an idea of what that means?
21:25 "I beseech."
21:27 Oh, I beg of you.
21:32 I implore, I beseech, I beg of, Eodia, and I implore, beseech, and beg of, Syntyche,
21:42 to be of the same mind in the Lord.
21:45 And I urge you also, true companion, help these women.
21:51 Let's stop there for a moment.
21:55 Paul said help, but before he said help, he said, "I implore," and he said, "I urge."
22:02 Okay.
22:03 He implores these women to be of what?
22:06 The same mind in the Lord.
22:09 Then he writes, and he's not clear about it, who this true companion is.
22:13 I believe the true companion is the Philippian church.
22:17 I believe he's saying in verse 3, "And I urge you also, Philippian believers, help these
22:23 ladies who," what?
22:25 "Labored with me in the gospel."
22:29 Not only did they labor with me in the gospel, they labored with my fellow worker, Clement,
22:39 and the rest of them, my fellow workers, whose names are where?
22:44 In the book of life.
22:47 This Clement is an important figure.
22:49 The Catholic church would say he was the fourth pope, but he wasn't.
22:53 They would say Peter's the first pope, but he wasn't either.
22:57 They weren't popes, they were just the pastors at Rome.
23:00 But to be the pope is to be the pastor at Rome, but that has nothing to do with the
23:03 Bible.
23:06 The Bible highlights this gentleman who Paul considered a fellow worker.
23:14 He identifies two ladies that helped both of them and all their fellow workers whose
23:19 names are written in the book of life, and then he urges the Philippian believers to
23:25 help them.
23:28 Let's keep going.
23:32 Look now at Romans 16.
23:40 Romans 16.
23:41 Another thing that we're going to notice with all of these Scriptures is that men and women
23:47 were of necessity to build the church.
23:53 When you read the New Testament, when you read God's Word, you see men and women working
23:59 side by side.
24:02 Sadly, the traditions of men would interfere hundreds of years later, and women would be
24:09 placed under bondage in the name of the Lord.
24:16 There was one lesson I shared with you all last year.
24:19 Matter of fact, it was the Father's Day Juneteenth lesson, and in that lesson I shared with you,
24:24 there was one specific council of elders that were coming together just to determine if
24:32 women had a soul.
24:39 That's how, watch this, that's how women were viewed, not in the earliest days of the church,
24:46 but in early days that would follow the earliest days.
24:50 But if we go with the script, we see some mighty powerful women in the gospel, laboring
24:58 with some mighty powerful men in the gospel.
25:02 And you'll notice how often Paul acknowledges those who have been a help to him.
25:10 Look here in Romans chapter 16, verse 1.
25:14 He says, "I commend to you Phoebe," oh, how I would love to spend some time on Phoebe
25:18 right now, "our sister, who is a servant of the church in Sincrea, that you may receive
25:30 her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints and assist her."
25:35 Oh, I could elaborate on that right there.
25:38 Assist her in whatever business she has need of you.
25:44 The wording is very similar to wording that we see in the gospel when Jesus said, "When
25:50 you go into a town, loose a colt and a donkey and tell the colt and the donkey the Lord
25:56 has need of you."
25:59 Now, now, if the disciples were to tell the colt and the donkey that the Lord has need
26:07 of you, who do you believe was the superior in that specific relationship?
26:12 The Lord or the donkey?
26:16 And I submit to you, the wording is almost identical here when Paul says, "Hey, you,
26:22 church at Rome, help Phoebe and assist her in whatever she has need of you."
26:32 Paul put a woman in charge.
26:34 Oh, I know this one doesn't bode well with certain individuals in the body of Christ.
26:44 I don't know if you all heard about, this wasn't too long ago, but, you know, the Baptists,
26:48 they kicked Rick Warren out because he put women in the position of pastor.
26:55 And I believe that some of the leaders in the Southern Baptists denomination genuinely
27:03 believe what they believe about women not being in those kinds of leadership positions.
27:09 I don't believe that every man pushes this from a place of keeping women in bondage.
27:15 In other words, some of them are reading the Scriptures and they believe that they're reading
27:19 what they're seeing and what they're seeing is what's meant.
27:22 They genuinely believe that.
27:25 But the problem is you cannot, you cannot build an entire movement on one verse.
27:32 You can't do it.
27:34 It's dangerous to do that.
27:37 And while in 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 12, see, I'm not supposed to be going here, but
27:45 I think it is applicable because we're talking about help.
27:48 See, I need men and women to help me and I need men and women to help the men and women
27:53 that are helping me.
27:58 And I need women to help men and I need men to help women.
28:02 If Crenshaw's going somewhere else beyond where we are right now.
28:07 And so in 1 Timothy chapter 2 verse 12, Paul says, I don't permit a woman to teach a man
28:15 or have authority over a man.
28:18 Seems pretty clear what he's saying.
28:21 If you only read the surface, if you only read the surface, then it sounds like Paul
28:28 is saying what?
28:29 It sounds like Paul is saying what Paul said.
28:30 I said what I said.
28:33 I said, I don't permit a woman to teach men and I don't permit a woman to have authority
28:39 over men.
28:40 I said what I said.
28:41 Adam was for him first, wasn't he?
28:46 You walk away from that and you'll walk away if you walk away from that only.
28:51 You'll walk away believing Paul as an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, he put his foot
28:57 down and the Holy Spirit approved it because he inspired him to write it.
29:01 So obviously that must be what he means, except we're not considering what was going on in
29:08 the church when he wrote it.
29:09 Oh, and by the way, by the way, Paul, I need an example for this.
29:16 Oh, gee, Dr. Price example.
29:19 I need an example.
29:20 I need, I need like five people to stand right here and one person to stand here.
29:29 Can I get six of y'all right now?
29:31 I need one man to stand right here, just right there.
29:35 And I need about five or six to just stand right here.
29:37 Yeah, right there, right there.
29:41 Perfect.
29:42 Thank you all.
29:43 I appreciate your help.
29:44 I want you to get an understanding of this.
29:47 Most of the time when Paul is writing his epistles, he's writing to churches.
29:54 He's writing to churches.
29:57 He's writing to the church at Rome, the church at Corinth, the church at Galatia, the church
30:03 at Philippi, the church at Ephesus.
30:05 But when it comes to Timothy, he was only talking to him.
30:10 When he wrote to Timothy, he was talking to Timothy.
30:15 Now we're at a church and we have the privilege and opportunity to be nosy and peek in on
30:21 the letter he wrote Timothy.
30:25 And not only did he write Timothy one letter, he wrote Timothy another letter.
30:29 And after he wrote Timothy a letter, he wrote Titus a letter.
30:34 And we have to be careful that when we're reading the letters to Timothy, that we don't
30:39 assume that everything he's telling Timothy applied to the church.
30:45 You all can be seated.
30:49 Watch this.
30:50 If I'm writing you a letter, I'm writing you a letter.
30:53 If I'm writing the church a letter, I'm writing the church a letter.
30:56 So when Paul was writing to Timothy, he told Timothy, "Listen, Timothy, I don't permit
31:02 a woman to teach and I don't permit a woman to have authority over men."
31:06 Why?
31:07 "Because Timothy, this church you're leading in Ephesus has been infiltrated by a female
31:15 cult.
31:16 It's called the cult of Diana."
31:20 How do we know this?
31:22 Read Acts 19.
31:24 The entire city was in the theater saying, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians."
31:29 That's who they worshipped.
31:31 She was a goddess.
31:33 You can go to Ephesus today and buy a statue of Diana.
31:38 That is how influential she is over Ephesus, even to this day.
31:46 So the Ephesian believers were being infiltrated by her cult.
31:53 And some of those ladies were infecting the believing ladies in the Lord and redirecting
32:01 them from the gospel to Diana's gospel.
32:06 And when they would infect them and redirect them to Diana's gospel, some of those women
32:11 infected by the cult of Diana were married to men in the church and they were influencing
32:17 those men.
32:19 Timothy had a problem in his church, so Paul had to write to Timothy to rectify the situation.
32:23 At the church in Ephesus, Timothy was pastoring.
32:29 You can't take what he wrote to Timothy and say, "For time immemorial, as long as the
32:34 church exists wherever it exists on the earth, women be silent."
32:45 That's not what he was saying.
32:49 And you know it because you know that the Bible doesn't contradict itself.
32:54 If Paul tells Timothy, "I don't permit a woman to have authority over men," but then he gives
32:59 Phoebe, a woman, authority over men, then I must need to go back to the context of Timothy.
33:06 Why are y'all doing this to me?
33:10 Why are you making me go in this direction?
33:17 This is not a woman's empowerment lesson.
33:29 Assist her.
33:30 See, I already did the study.
33:35 I did the study where Paul calls someone a fellow.
33:40 What's a fellow worker?
33:41 That's a worker who stands by my side.
33:44 He even calls some fellow prisoners, meaning what?
33:46 We were in jail together.
33:47 This is my inmate buddy.
33:49 We served time together.
33:51 Fellow prisoners, right?
33:53 He calls some fellow workers.
33:54 Guess what Peter does in 1 Peter 5?
33:56 He refers to other pastors as fellow elders.
34:02 Fellow.
34:03 But Paul didn't refer to the church at Rome as fellow workers to Phoebe.
34:08 He said, "Help her.
34:10 Assist her in whatever business she has.
34:12 What need of you?"
34:15 That means I, Paul, have given a measure of authority to Phoebe for her to function at
34:20 the church at Rome, and you help her where she needs to help.
34:24 Paul said it.
34:26 Okay.
34:27 Look at verse 3.
34:32 Greet Priscilla and Aquila.
34:37 I don't know no man named Priscilla.
34:39 I mean, I don't know a man named Aquila either, but for sure Priscilla don't sound like a
34:46 man's name.
34:48 And that's because it's not a man's name.
34:51 This is a woman's name.
34:52 Now watch this.
34:53 Let me show you how specific God is.
34:56 Priscilla and Aquila.
34:57 Let me back it up to the Old Testament.
35:02 How many of you know that when you're reading a genealogy, there is a specific reason why
35:08 a certain name is mentioned first?
35:12 In most cases, it's the firstborn.
35:16 The majority of the cases, when you're reading a genealogy and so-and-so begot so-and-so,
35:22 that first so-and-so is mentioned first because they were born first.
35:27 And therefore, being the firstborn, they're entitled to the blessing.
35:32 They would then be considered the leader of the children.
35:36 That's in most cases.
35:39 Other times, if a name was mentioned first, it was because that name would end up having
35:46 the greatest of the responsibilities of the others in the list.
35:51 Now here we have a husband and a wife, and the wife was mentioned first.
35:56 But this is what makes God so amazing.
36:00 This couple right here in verse 3, Priscilla and Aquila, by the way, he says, "My fellow
36:06 workers."
36:09 That means what?
36:10 Priscilla and Aquila stand beside me, Paul the Apostle.
36:16 Priscilla and Aquila are mentioned six times in the New Testament.
36:20 Would you believe that three of those times, Priscilla's name is mentioned first, the other
36:24 three times, Aquila's name is mentioned first?
36:29 It's not accidental.
36:31 I believe the context is speaking to whoever either had the greater anointing in said situation
36:38 or whoever had the greater responsibility in said situation.
36:42 In this particular context, Priscilla's name is mentioned first.
36:45 "Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus.
36:49 They risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all
36:54 the churches of the Gentiles.
36:56 Likewise, greet the church that's in their house.
37:03 Greet my beloved Eponidas, who was the firstfruits of Achaia to Christ."
37:11 Meaning he was the first of the Greeks to be born again.
37:14 "Greet Mary," that's a woman, "who labored much for us."
37:23 See, pay attention to when you read "for us" and when you read "with us."
37:30 You know, there's a difference between someone working for you and someone working with you.
37:34 And the Bible's very clear as to who's working with who and who's working for who.
37:41 It's all help, it's all labor, and it's all work.
37:44 But it shows us there has to be some kind of order.
37:46 See, God is a God of order.
37:50 Jesus is a Messiah of order.
37:51 So therefore, he's called his church to have order.
37:56 The ministry gifts in Ephesians 4:11 are also considered governments or administrations.
38:03 So the pastor is a government, a governmental and administrative position in the Lord's
38:08 church.
38:10 That means there's a degree of authority that the pastor has.
38:14 Now it doesn't mean that the pastor is supposed to rule his church like a kingdom, like a
38:18 king would.
38:19 No, that's not what it means.
38:21 But there is authority and responsibility given to that governmental, administrative
38:26 figure.
38:29 As a matter of fact, listen, if you see anyone on this stage, if you see anyone walking the
38:40 aisles, there's a measure of authority that's been delegated to them for them to do what
38:45 it is they've been called to do and how they aid this ministry.
38:51 Work with, work for, it's all labor.
38:54 Look at this.
38:55 Verse 7, "Greet Andronicus and Hunia."
38:57 This is another husband and wife team.
39:00 Some believe maybe brother and sister, but we know a male and female team.
39:04 Andronicus and Hunia, my countrymen and my what?
39:07 Fellow prisoners.
39:09 Watch this.
39:12 Who are of note among the apostles?
39:15 If you have a traditional, it might read eminent, eminent among the apostles.
39:19 Now there's a debate right now in the church as to whether this means, as a matter of fact,
39:24 my sister Cheryl, she's so brilliant.
39:26 We've had a conversation about this and we actually have differing views.
39:32 You know it's okay to have a differing view, right?
39:34 As long as it doesn't generate envy and strife.
39:37 If it generates envy and strife, then that's a foolish dispute.
39:43 But the word dispute, when we hear the word dispute, we might think negatively, but the
39:46 word dispute on its own is not a negative word.
39:49 It just depends on the context that dispute is in.
39:52 If it's foolish, then it generates envy and strife.
39:54 But there are healthy disputes.
39:56 You all ever heard of the Bereans?
39:58 The Bereans got together and they reasoned about the scriptures.
40:03 Don't you think that they would have had some differing views?
40:06 They would have had some disputes?
40:08 Not ones necessarily that generate envy and strife, but we're disputing about something.
40:13 And so there's a dispute in the church that says in the seventh verse, was Paul saying
40:21 that Andronicus and Hunia, a man and a woman, was he saying that they were well known among
40:27 the apostles or was he saying they were well known apostles?
40:32 Which if he was saying the latter, that really blows a hole in the misogyny in the body of
40:38 Christ.
40:40 If a woman was an apostle and was called one by Paul.
40:48 Now while I don't oppose that, I believe the wording here says that they were well known
40:54 among, but my sister believes the opposite.
40:59 And maybe you are in agreement with her that what Paul was saying right here is that Andronicus
41:03 and Hunia were well known apostles.
41:06 Could have been.
41:07 Bottom line, what did Paul call them?
41:09 Fellow.
41:10 Listen, if they were fellow prisoners, most likely they were fellow workers.
41:15 They probably were doing some kingdom work together and got caught and got put in jail
41:19 together.
41:22 Fellow prisoners, whereas Mary labored for us.
41:26 You see that.
41:27 Priscilla and Aquila, fellow workers.
41:30 Mary labored for us.
41:32 Andronicus and Hunia, fellow prisoners.
41:37 Working for, working with, it's all labor and it's all help.
41:43 And it's needed for a healthy church in the earth and it's needed for a local body of
41:50 believers to be healthy.
41:52 Are you with me?
41:54 Okay.
41:56 Look at Acts 17.
41:58 I'm going to give you one more husband and wife team.
42:05 It's very biblical to see husbands and wives working together in ministry.
42:11 Co-laboring in ministry.
42:13 It's very biblical.
42:14 We see it right here.
42:15 Acts 17, this is, this is my, we're just going to look at verses 32 through 34.
42:20 This is my favorite sermon that Paul preached because this is the sermon that, that let
42:26 me know how brilliant this man was and how he could adapt to any environment he found
42:31 himself in.
42:33 He's preaching to the most intelligent of the intelligent in this chapter.
42:38 He preaches the gospel like he does everywhere else.
42:43 Those of us took a trip to Israel and Greece and Rome and other places in 2014.
42:50 I'm telling you, if you can somehow, can you put trips on like Afterpay and Klarna and
42:56 like a firm you guys, you guys know about Afterpay and, and PayPal installment.
43:01 Okay.
43:02 Anyway, I guess maybe only I do that.
43:05 I put t-shirts on Klarna.
43:07 I'm not even going to front.
43:10 I'm serious.
43:11 Some of y'all know, sometimes you don't feel like spending $50 right now.
43:16 You rather spend $12.50 right now and then get charged $12.50 again every two weeks.
43:21 Sometimes that's just the mood I'm in.
43:22 If you want to judge me, you go right ahead and judge me.
43:24 I don't really care.
43:25 It's just sometimes that's just what I feel like doing.
43:30 But anyway, we were privileged in 2014 to be in Greece and walk where Paul walked.
43:39 We walked where he walked in the 17th chapter of Acts on the Areopagus.
43:45 Mars Hill, the Rock of Aries.
43:46 So anyway, he preaches the gospel and then we get to verse 32 and it reads like this.
43:52 When they heard of the what?
43:55 Resurrection of the dead.
43:56 Okay.
43:57 If they heard about the resurrection of the dead, that means the resurrection of the dead
44:00 was preached.
44:01 And if the resurrection of the dead was preached, that means Jesus was preached.
44:05 Because you can't preach about the resurrection without talking about he who is the resurrection.
44:11 So obviously Jesus was preached, the resurrection of the dead was preached, and look at what
44:15 verse 32 says.
44:17 When they heard some of them what?
44:19 They mocked.
44:22 Meaning they what?
44:25 They made fun of, they laughed at, they rejected it.
44:30 They heard the gospel preached properly and after hearing the gospel preached properly,
44:38 they what?
44:39 They rejected it.
44:41 That's how you go to hell.
44:44 That's how you go to hell.
44:45 You go to hell, watch this, you go to hell when you reject the gospel.
44:53 What does it say next?
44:58 It says while others said what?
45:01 We will hear you again on this matter.
45:10 But it does say that one sows and then one waters.
45:18 Ultimately God is the one who gives the inquiries.
45:20 But these are the reasoners.
45:22 First group, rejecters.
45:24 You're going to have them.
45:25 You're going to preach the gospel and they're going to reject.
45:29 And then you have the reasoners.
45:31 They're the ones saying hmm, kind of like what you're saying.
45:39 I'm willing to converse about this again.
45:41 I'll hear you again on this matter.
45:44 Maybe we can spend a little more time talking about this.
45:48 Forget the rejecters, they can go to hell.
45:51 But the reasoners, I'm interested in reasoners.
45:58 I'm interested, watch this.
46:00 See pay attention to what I said.
46:01 I didn't say I'm not interested in people who haven't heard the gospel.
46:05 I'm interested in people who haven't heard the gospel.
46:07 But after hearing the gospel, you reject it, go to hell.
46:12 Go right on to hell.
46:14 God is going to let you go.
46:19 But look at verse 33.
46:21 So Paul departed from among them, however, some men what?
46:25 Oh, look at that.
46:26 Now we have a third group.
46:29 So first we have the rejecters of the gospel.
46:32 Then we have the reasoners on the gospel, but the ones who joined are the receivers.
46:38 They received, and look at this.
46:40 Some men joined him and believed among them Dionysius the Areopagus, meaning this was
46:45 a man of the Areopagus.
46:47 He was one of the intelligent of the philosophers and those who wanted to only talk about new
46:55 things.
46:56 That's what they did on the Rock of Aries.
46:57 They just talked about new things.
46:59 Paul goes in, lays them out with the gospel.
47:02 Some of them reject, some of them reason, some of them receive.
47:05 I'm for the reasoners and the receivers.
47:08 Forget the rejecters, the reasoners and the receivers.
47:12 And some joined Dionysius the Areopagus.
47:15 By his name, by his name, he was committed to another God.
47:23 He was committed to another God.
47:24 He heard the gospel.
47:26 The gospel breached the barrier of that God, ministered to him, and he got saved.
47:31 And then it says, "And then a woman named Damaris," and it says "others," plural, "with
47:36 them."
47:37 Why the first two names mentioned?
47:39 Because they got married.
47:42 And they built the church in Athens.
47:44 We actually drove by their church, the church they built when we were in Greece in 2014,
47:48 the church that was the result of the gospel being preached to Dionysius and Damaris in
47:53 Athens.
47:56 And look, others joined with them.
47:59 Anyone who joined Paul eventually would be some kind of a help to Paul.
48:06 Are you with me still?
48:10 Look at 2 Corinthians.
48:11 2 Corinthians.
48:12 We're going to look at one verse in chapter 8, verse 23.
48:18 2 Corinthians 8, 23.
48:24 One verse.
48:25 Okay, this is in the part of the letter to the Corinthians where Paul teaches about cheerful
48:30 giving.
48:32 And so he says here in this 23rd verse, he says, "If anyone inquires about," who?
48:39 Have you heard of Titus?
48:41 You've heard of Titus.
48:43 Paul wrote a letter to Titus, just like he wrote to Timothy.
48:46 Those are called the pastoral epistles.
48:49 That's why he's writing them to one person.
48:51 Now, yes, other pastors can learn from, can glean from, even believers can glean from,
48:57 but we just have to have the understanding that Paul was writing to them specifically.
49:03 But that's the same Titus.
49:04 And look at what he says about Titus.
49:06 He says, "If you inquire about Titus, know he's my partner and my," what?
49:11 "Fellow worker concerning you."
49:16 Watch this.
49:17 "For if our brethren are inquired about, they are," what?
49:21 "Messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ."
49:26 Messengers, apostolos, meaning they're apostles.
49:31 So Titus, who was a pastor, Titus, who Paul called a son in the faith, that same Titus
49:37 Paul also called a fellow worker.
49:40 And Titus started off in the office of apostle.
49:44 Messengers, you don't see the word a lot in Scripture.
49:48 I believe you only see it twice in the New Testament, messenger.
49:51 You see it one time when Paul says, "A messenger of Satan was given to me," that's the thorn
49:54 in the flesh.
49:55 That word messenger means angel.
49:58 But the other two times you see the word messenger, regarding Titus, fellow brethren, and one
50:03 by the name of Epaphroditus in Philippians chapter 1 and 2.
50:08 Apostolos, apostles.
50:12 That's what they were.
50:13 Look now, we'll finish here with 1 Thessalonians chapter 1.
50:20 1 Thessalonians chapter 1.
50:27 Look at verse 1.
50:30 You see all this help Paul has had?
50:33 Can't do it by himself.
50:34 Men and women helping him.
50:39 Do I believe God has an order?
50:42 I do believe He has an order.
50:45 I believe that the same way God has called the man to head the family, I believe He's
50:50 called the man to head the church.
50:53 However, how many of you know that there is the acceptable will of God?
51:00 There is the "this is what I can work with" will of God.
51:05 And sometimes men don't commit to their family commitments and they leave that woman with
51:14 all them kids and that woman has to be mommy and daddy.
51:18 You telling me God's not honoring that woman for raising up those boys and those girls?
51:25 And the same way that a man might bail on his own family, a man might bail on the family
51:31 of God and God's got to work with what He has available.
51:35 And sometimes that's a woman.
51:36 It doesn't mean a woman is less.
51:38 I'm just simply saying God clearly is a God of order.
51:41 He says the man is the head of the wife as Christ is head of the church.
51:45 He's saying the man is the one who stands in front of his family and leads.
51:49 That's who the man is.
51:50 The Bible tells us in 1 Timothy that a bishop must be the husband of one wife.
51:56 That tells me that God's original or perfect scenario is that a man lead the church the
52:03 same way a man leads the family.
52:05 But watch this.
52:07 He opens up that verse with "whoever desires the office of a bishop."
52:12 It reads "man" but in the Greek it means "whosoever."
52:17 Just like a woman may have to lead her family, a woman may have to lead the church.
52:22 And she's not in sin for doing either of those two or functioning in either of those two
52:26 scenarios.
52:28 She's not in the wrong.
52:29 She's absolutely in the right.
52:31 Okay, we're going in here.
52:34 Look at this.
52:35 1 Thessalonians 1.
52:39 Would you all help me read these first three names right here?
52:42 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy.
52:47 You all know Silvanus by another name, Silas.
52:52 So to Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
52:54 Not to Paul, but this is from them actually.
52:58 This is how we know.
52:59 Look, Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy.
53:02 To who?
53:03 Talk to me.
53:04 I see you students.
53:05 To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
53:10 Grace to you church at Thessalonica.
53:14 And peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
53:18 Look at the first word in verse 2.
53:19 What does it say?
53:20 "We."
53:21 Who do you think the "we" is?
53:24 Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
53:30 Paul's writing, but he's saying what?
53:32 We give thanks.
53:34 He opened up the letter letting you know who it's from.
53:37 Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
53:39 And he says what?
53:40 We give thanks.
53:41 Now jump over to chapter 2.
53:43 Jump over to chapter 2.
53:46 We'll read these six verses.
53:47 We'll be done for today.
53:51 It says, "For you yourselves know, brethren, that our..."
53:53 Who's the "our"?
53:56 Talk to me.
53:57 "That our coming to you was not in vain.
54:01 But even after we..."
54:02 Who's the "we"?
54:05 "...had suffered before and were spitefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we were
54:12 bold in our God to speak to you the Gospel of God in much conflict.
54:17 For our exhortation did not come from error or uncleanness, nor was it in deceit.
54:25 But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Gospel, even so we speak
54:35 not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.
54:41 For neither at any time did we use flattering words, as you know, nor a cloak for covetousness.
54:50 God is witness."
54:51 Last verse.
54:52 "Nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, when we might have made
55:04 demands as apostles," plural, "of Christ."
55:10 Did Paul just call himself and Silas and Timothy apostles?
55:18 Yes, he did.
55:21 He just did.
55:24 So for those who have said for years, "There are only 12 apostles," I don't know what Bible
55:32 you've been reading.
55:40 They don't understand something very important.
55:43 This is why you need instructors.
55:47 And I understand that the role that I play doesn't always garner the largest audience,
55:54 because I'm an equipper.
55:56 See I'm not, and I get it, some people say they just need something, they need a message
56:00 to get them through the day.
56:02 They need a message to get them through the week.
56:04 I'm not a week pastor, I'm a life pastor.
56:09 I don't know how to just get you through the day, I don't know how to just get you through
56:11 the week.
56:14 But if you have some patience and you walk with me, I'll get you through life.
56:21 That's the kind of equipper I am, that's the kind of instructor I am, that's the kind of
56:23 teacher that I am, and they don't understand apostleships.
56:26 Yes, there were only 12 who walked with Jesus, correct.
56:31 There are only 12 who saw His death and His resurrection and His ascension, correct.
56:36 There are only 12 apostles of the Lamb.
56:40 That apostleship is closed.
56:42 But what about Paul?
56:43 Wouldn't Paul be disqualified?
56:44 He wasn't there, and yet the Bible calls him an apostle.
56:47 And he tells the Corinthian believers, "You are the seal of my apostleship."
56:52 It sounds to me like whoever has been sent to a group, that group is their seal, the
56:56 seal of their apostleship.
56:58 Then you have the Ephesians 4 apostleship.
57:00 Barnabas, James the brother of Jesus, who do we have here?
57:04 Thurdidus, Titus, Timothy, Silas, and all the others.
57:07 I told you I wasn't trying to make this about women in ministry and apostleships, but I
57:13 kind of couldn't help myself.
57:15 As you can see, Paul could not do it by himself.
57:19 Peter could not do it by himself.
57:20 They needed help.
57:22 There were those who worked with them.
57:24 There were those who worked for them.
57:28 There were those who labored with him, those he referred to as fellow workers, fellow prisoners.
57:37 But all of it at its core was help.
57:41 I can't do this by myself.
57:42 I need your help.
57:45 Those of you in this room, those of you watching online, if Corinthian Chalk Freshness Center
57:49 is to advance beyond the upper stratosphere, beyond the atmosphere, I need your help.
57:56 I need every joint in this place to supply and do your part and do your share so Corinthian
58:02 Chalk Christian Center can have healthy growth.
58:06 Now, I really need you to tune in moving forward, because from here on out, we're talking about
58:13 vision.
58:18 Moving forward in this lesson, we're talking about, we're going to go from the vision of
58:22 Christ to the vision that God gave Dad to the vision that He's given me for this place.
58:30 Father, we thank you for your Word is life and truth.
58:32 [APPLAUSE]