In Paul’s words to the Thessalonian brethren, we find this admonition: “But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;” (1 Thessalonians 4:9–10.) Though it was not necessary for Paul to address the brethren at Thessalonica con- cerning brotherly love because they were taught of God to love one another, the apostle still begged that their love would“increase more and more.”
The Shelbyville Road Church of Christ has always been a friendly congregation. It was when I arrived forty years ago; it remains such today. The reason for this? We were “taught of God to love one another.” So, there is no need to speak of this matter; however, in a fine article by my friend and brother, John Chowning, we are taught of God the importance of greeting eve- ryone. So, I commend this article to you. It is the duty of all Christians at Shelbyville Road to welcome each other and visitors to our services. Parents with children (who are looking after them) may not have the opportunity to greet all; older members with health concerns may not be able to get around to all; how- ever, as we have opportunity and ability, we should carry out this God-given duty. Greet one another, brethren. (bfv)
You’re Welcome
The final night of our recent Vacation Bible School was fo- cused upon a study of Peter’s willingness to welcome the Gentiles into the body of Christ. As the apostle Paul states in Ephesians 3, it was God’s eternal purpose (v. 11) “that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel” (v. 6). In Romans 9:24-26 and 10:11-13, the inspired apostle demonstrates how the prophets Hosea, Isaiah, and Joel implicitly foretold this glorious characteristic of the gos- pel.
Although the English word “welcome” is not found in the King James translation of the Bible, there are several Greek words that correspond to at least one of the shades of meaning this English word has. Aspazomai has the idea of greeting or sa- luting others with warmth and friendliness (see Romans 16:3-16 for its repeated use); dechomai means to receive a newcomer with gladness (such as Paul desired for Marcus should he travel to Colossae; see Colossians 4:10); and proslambano is to admit another willingly into your house or company as an equal peer (Paul has much to say about this in dealing with matters of conscience in Romans 14:1-15:7). Because of time limitations, the adult class ended Friday evening before we could consider how God’s peo- ple are expected to conduct themselves in the area of welcoming others. It may surprise you how much is said in the New Testa- ment on this matter.
Be quick to greet others, especially newcomers. The faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, is to be lived without partiality/being a respecter of persons (James 2:1). Those who fail to do so “commit sin and are convinced of the law as trans- gressors” (James 2:9). It should never be the case that there comes into our assembly a man with flashy jewelry and fine clothes and a poor man who comes in filthy clothes and we show partiality to the first visitor and shun the second guest (James 2:2-3). All visitors—regardless of their race, creed, nationality, age, socio-economic status, or sex—ought to be welcomed with kind- ness, not partiality.
Strive to warmly greet all your Christian brothers and sis- ters by name. Paul wrote to the Philippians that they were to“salute every saint in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:21). John closed his final epistle with this directive—“Greet the friends by name” (3 John 14). Both Paul (Romans 16:16; 1 Corinthians 16:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:26) and Peter (1 Peter 5:14) used the imperative mood when directing brethren to warmly greet one another in a way that was culturally accepted in the first century.
There is nothing inherently sinful about a congregation designating certain individuals to greet people at the front doors before and after services. But, should any member think that he is relieved of his God-given responsibilities in this area because others are doing it for him that day (and therefore he is free to converse with the few, select people he routinely talks to), he needs to think again—“every man shall bear his own burden” (Galatians 6:5). Fulfilling the expectations of Philippians 4:21, 3 John 14, and 1 Peter 5:14 cannot be done by proxy for you.
Be eager to receive brethren. Newborn babes in Christ need to be warmly and immediately welcomed into the family of God. They need to become part of the local church, a spiritual body, like the nutrients from your last meal were incorporated into your physical body.
Even though the right hand of fellowship cannot be extended indiscriminately (2 John 9-11), once the shepherds of the local congregation have done their due diligence and accepted the re- sponsibility of overseeing additional sheep, these new brothers and sisters need to be embraced. Acts 18:26 tells of the work of Apollos in Ephesus; it is written, “And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.” The phrase “took him unto them” is the transla- tion of the verb proslambano. It indicates that Aquila and Priscil- la took Apollos into their company and cultivated a relationship with him. It best explains why such a learned Bible scholar as Apollos (Acts 18:24-25) so readily listened to the doctrinal cor- rection of two tentmakers (Acts 18:2-3).
Beware of doing less than those in Melita. One of the best examples of what welcoming others looks like is found in the final chapter of Acts. The 27th chapter closes with a horrific shipwreck that devastates the entire ship; 276 passengers (v. 37) wash up on the shores of an island called Melita (Acts 28:1). Luke then writes the following: “And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain, and because of the cold” (Acts 28:2). If this is what “barbarous people” did for total strangers with whom they had no spiritual kinship, what do ye more than they?
— John Chowning