What price could be put on the power of God that delivers people and sets them free from their bondage? God needs men, women, and young people who are willing to serve by helping others live the more abundant life. God has given every believer a unique function to perform, and He has even placed believers in the Body of Christ who are very adept in ministering in special ways. He has also given us records of men and women in the Bible whose example of helping others we can imitate. The most rewarding kind of labor I know of is to be a helper in the movement of God’s Word.
God has given every believer a specific function to perform. We all have unique ways to contribute.
Romans 12:4,5:
For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office [function]:
So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
As born-again believers, we have each been placed by God in the Church, the Body of Christ, with a specific function to carry out. By serving God and helping others, we discover the many ways that we uniquely contribute. Then we get busy giving with all that we are, helping to minister God’s Word and assisting others in living more abundantly. Whatever our God-given function is in the one Body, we carry it out faithfully with love and believing. This is a fulfilling and rewarding adventure that God makes available to every believer.
Some of us will find that we have an adeptness in a ministry of service that is noted in the Bible as “helps.”
I Corinthians 12:28:
And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
Helps is a ministry of service in the Church that we all can contribute in, and it is one that some are very adept at, as I Corinthians 12:28 is indicating. The Greek word for “helps” means a rendering assistance. It is a helping or supporting. The simplest and strongest meaning of the ministry of helps is to supply another with what is needed to accomplish his ends. It is a vital aspect of God’s plan for ministering in the Church Age, and it is a necessary function in moving God’s prevailing Word to the world. Whether we function with the ministry of helps or not, we can all help and support others in the Body of Christ.
God had the lives of disciples who contributed in the category of helps recorded in His Word so that we might follow in their steps. In Romans 16 the Apostle Paul named more than twenty-five individuals who helped move God’s Word in the first century. Aquila and Priscilla were among these sterling examples. They were vitally involved with Paul as they labored diligently to give others the Word of Life. Their examples inspire us as we serve today, twenty centuries later.
Romans 16:3,4:
Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus:
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 called Aquila and Priscilla “my helpers in Christ Jesus.” They worked together with Paul as fellow laborers, rendering assistance and supplying him with whatever was needed to move the Word. Their willingness to serve and aid others was so strong that in verse 4 Paul said they “laid down their own necks.” They put their own lives on the line for Paul and the Word of God he taught. Verse 4 also shows that their lives and ministries reverberated to the point that not only Paul, but all the churches of the Gentiles gave thanks for them.
One of the ways Aquila and Priscilla helped others was by coordinating a fellowship in their home. As Romans 16 continues, we see this in verse 5: “Likewise greet the church that is in their house….” In the first-century Church, the local home provided the major setting for fellowship, teaching, and outreach. We do the same today. Our homes and fellowships are a safe harbor of peace for others voyaging through the storms of life.
We can contribute in a home fellowship by sharing God’s Word, performing music, or providing refreshments, for example. We might find that we are very effective at praying for others or at bringing new people to fellowship or at helping new believers get rooted and grounded spiritually. There are many ways that we can help move God’s Word in our day and time.
God needs believers who are willing to help others live the more abundant life. God has given every believer a specific function to perform, and He has placed believers in the Church who are adept in the ministry of helps. So let’s be like Aquila and Priscilla, who occupied themselves with the exciting learning adventure of serving by helping others. Let’s continue to look for ways that we can be helpers in the movement of God’s Word and enjoy the rewarding labor of helping others in the Body of Christ.