Category Archives: Partner

Bible, Companions, Grace, Partakers, Partner, Scripture

PARTAKERS OF GRACE

PHILIPPIANS 1:7

“For it is only right for me to feel this way about you all, because I have you in my heart, since both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers of grace with me.” 

I have several “companions” in ministry. I am closer to some than others. Do you know how we got closer? We spent time together. Some of these brothers I have known for 20 or more years. Some are recent acquaintances. Time spent together makes all the difference. We have experienced things together. We have cried, laughed and prayed together. We have truly experienced grace together.

Paul had a lot of companions in ministry. I love that he calls the Philippians his “partakers of grace.” The Greek word for “partakers” is sugkoinónos.  It comes “from sun and koinonos; a co-participant — companion, partake(-r, -r with).” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance) Remember, that little preposition sun is that inseparable “with” used in the Greek. Paul had been bound together with these brothers through the grace they shared in Jesus.

APPLICATION

This word sugkoinónos may look a little familiar. Part of it, koinonos, comes from a word we looked at earlier, koinonia, which means fellowship, communion. It is always good to do a deep dive word study on these compound words like sugkoinónos to see where they come from. This word is only used three other times in the New Testament. Let’s look at them.

In Romans 11:17, Paul uses this word when he writes, “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree,” God has grafted the Gentiles into the promises He made to Israel.

Paul uses this word again in 1 Corinthians 9:23. “I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.” Paul was joined to the Gospel. His passion was to deliver it to everyone he met. But he also lived it every day. The Gospel of Jesus had grabbed him on that Damascus road and never let go.

Lastly, we see sugkoinónos used by John in Revelation 1:9 as he begins to share about his vision at Patmos. “I, John, your brother and fellow participant in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.” Being a partner isn’t always pleasant, especially if it means persecution.

Are you a partner with others today in grace? Do you share their passion to spread the Gospel? Are you willing to suffer along with others for the cause of Christ? Be a partaker of grace today.

Father God, You have bestowed on me the privilege to partake of Your grace and share it with others.

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Bible, Communion, Fellowship, Partner, Scripture

JOIN US

PHILIPPIANS 1:5

“in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now.” 

Any time I get asked to join something, whether a trip somewhere or a group meeting, I have to ask myself two questions. One – Does this have any eternal value? Two – Do I have time for this? Those two questions usually give me good guidance. I want to be about my Father’s business, don’t you?

Paul was appreciative of the Philippians’ “participation in the gospel.” From what Paul wrote here it seems they had been from the beginning. The Greek word translated “participation” is koinonia. This word is also translated as fellowship, communion or sharing. But one thing is clear – it is not just a casual involvement. Koinónia implies a sense of intimacy and genuine love.

APPLICATION

In 1 Corinthians 1:9, Paul uses this word again. “God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” I have heard it said that true koinonia isn’t about cookies and Kool-Aid. It’s about being connected to something bigger than you. We all need koinonia, whether we want to admit it or not.

In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians we read this in chapter 13 and verse 14. “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.” Some versions use the word “communion” instead of “fellowship” here. Communion gives more of the intimacy in the relationship. The Holy Spirit dwells within you, if you are a believer. You can’t get much more intimate.

Finally, in 1 John 1:3, 6-7, we see John using koinonia to refer to fellowship with each other and God the Father and Jesus. “3 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” So, join the family of God in sweet communion and fellowship and together we can fight this battle and walk in victory.

Lord, I desire fellowship with You and other believers.

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Bible, Fellow worker, Loyalty, Partner, Scripture

ONE OF THE FEW

COLOSSIANS 4:11

“and also Jesus who is called Justus; these are the only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are from the circumcision, and they have proved to be an encouragement to me.”

Sometimes when you move to a new city you will have a few of your new neighbors who reach out. They become the few among the many who make you feel welcomed. My wife and I moved to a new city one year ago and into a fairly large subdivision. It’s sad to say but the only neighbors we have met are the ones we have reached out to. No one has come to our door with a welcome gift or a casserole (that’s popular in the South). We should all be better neighbors.

Paul, however, had a few Jewish believers who stuck with him. We mentioned two of those yesterday, Mark or John Mark and Aristarchus. Many of the other Jewish believers were pretty fickle in their support for Paul. But here is Jesus (also called Justus) who Paul describes as a “fellow worker for the kingdom of God.” What a great compliment from Paul. Paul valued fellow workers because he knew he could not do the work alone. We are no different.

APPLICATION

Too many Christians fail because they think they can do it alone. This term fellow worker, used by Paul almost exclusively in the New Testament, is the Greek word sunergos. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance says it comes, “From a presumed compound of sun and the base of ergon; a co-laborer, i.e. Coadjutor — companion in labour, (fellow-) helper (-labourer, -worker), labourer together with, workfellow.” Remember, that preposition sun is that inseparable “with.”

Paul uses sunergos in Romans 16:3, 9, 16; 1 Corinthians 3:9; 2 Corinthians 1:24, 8:23; Philippians 4:3, 11; 1 Thessalonians 3:2; and Philemon 1, 24. Look up these verses and see who Paul is talking about. Can you just imagine your name listed there as one of Paul’s fellow workers? That would be awesome.

Only John, besides Paul, uses this term in 1 John 1:8. “Therefore we ought to support such people, so that we may prove to be fellow workers with the truth.” And he gives the same weight to this term. We should all be fellow workers with the truth. Amen. Are you?

Father, make me into the kind of fellow worker with others that they need and give me fellow workers to accomplish all You have for me to do.

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Bible, Friends, Ministry, Partner, Reconciled, Scripture

MAKING UP

COLOSSIANS 4:10

“Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greetings; and also Barnabas’ cousin Mark (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him);”

Have you ever made up with an old friend? Once you make up, you both often realize how silly your dispute was in the beginning. There’s an old song that says, “Making up is hard to do.” Well, it is if we allow our flesh to stand in the way. But if we allow the Spirit of God to rule us, we will be quick to reconcile.

Paul mentions a couple of people who are with him during this imprisonment. He directly calls Aristarchus “my fellow prisoner.” He doesn’t call Mark a fellow prisoner, so he must have been free to leave and go to Colossae. It is noteworthy that Paul asks specifically for Mark to be welcomed by the church there. He was probably afraid they may have heard about the rift between Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15) over Mark and hold that against him. Paul is giving Mark an introductory letter to the church there with his full confidence.

APPLICATION

Mark had undoubtedly matured and become, once again, a trusted partner in ministry with Paul. Mark must have also lost some of his fear of persecution (some think this was the reason he deserted Paul earlier). Why else would he have been there with Paul during this imprisonment? Perhaps Mark had been rebuilding his relationship with Paul since that first breach.

We are told in Ephesians 4:1-3, “1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Paul was a peacemaker. He had made peace with Mark. Is there someone you need to make peace with?

Maybe you’re saying, Well, it’s been too long. They would never forgive me now.” Wrong. We don’t know how long it took Paul and Mark to make up, but they did. It may have been months or years. The time doesn’t matter. Do it today. At least try. You may be spurned by that person. If so, forgive them anyway. Pray for them daily. Do all you can to reconcile and then leave the rest with God.

Father, help me to be a peace with all those around me.

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Allies, Bible, Partakers, Partner, Scripture

THE RIGHT PARTNER

EPHESIANS 5:7

“Therefore do not become partners with them;”

You’ve probably heard the expression “Partners in Crime.” It’s meant to portray people who tend to stick together. Now, this can be a good thing or a bad thing. I have some friends who I can stick with through anything. I used to have some friends in my “before Christ” days who could have been classified in the negative way. We just looked for things to get in trouble. You may have people like that in your life. Perhaps this verse is for you today.

Paul warns the Ephesians again in today’s verse to stay away from those who practice all the negative things he has just written about. Their goal is to bring them down. Paul uses the same Greek word back in Ephesians 3:6 which is translated as “partners” here. These are the only two times this word is used in the New Testament. Interestingly enough, back in 3:6 it is used in a positive sense whereas here in today’s verse it is used negatively. You can be partakers or partners with a lot of people. You just have to guard against joining yourself to the wrong crowd.

APPLICATION

I love spy movies. Often in those movies someone will innocently get involved with a bad spy. Before they know it, they are wrapped up in their schemes and are doing things they never thought they would do. The same is true of us. I love how Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible explains this. It says it means “In their sins, and acts of disobedience; by keeping needless company with them; by abetting and encouraging sinful practices; by conniving at them, and not reproving for them; or by committing the same things.”

Who are your “buds”? Who do you hang out with the most? Are they a good influence on you and point you to Jesus or do they lead you away from the truth? Choose your friends wisely. Choose carefully whom you spend time with and associate with. Yes, we need to reach the lost. Yes, we need to get to know unbelievers and invite them to Jesus. But we cannot become wrapped up in their lives at the expense of our spiritual life.

The devil is very sneaky. He will send people into your life who seem above board. They may say all the right things, but they don’t believe them. To all of you out there who are dating an unbeliever – stop now. Don’t buy the lie that you can change them. You can’t. Only Jesus can. And if He wants them to be your spouse, He will change them into what you need to grow spiritually. Enough said!

Father, give me partners who agree with Your truth and can help build me up.

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Agreement, Allies, Bible, Fellowship, Hand, Integrity, Loyalty, Partner, Relationships, Scripture

RIGHT HAND OF FELLOWSHIP

GALATIANS 2:9

“and recognizing the grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John, who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we might go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised.”

A handshake – it used to mean something. Many a deal was made just by a simple handshake between individuals. A man’s word was his bond. That handshake meant each man would follow through on what they had agreed upon. No paperwork was required. No lawyer was needed. My dad had that kind of reputation in my hometown. Jack Willis’ word was enough. That’s the kind of man I strive to be.

When James, Peter and John gave Paul and Barnabas the “right hand of fellowship” they were agreeing to support them in their mission to the Gentiles. They were saying We trust you to carry out the mission we have agreed on. They recognized them as fellow-laborers for Christ. Whether this was done privately or in public, this handshake was a formal agreement between them. Paul believed them and was supported by them.

APPLICATION

Perhaps you have given that “right hand of fellowship” to someone. What does that mean to you? Will you support that individual in their walk with the Lord? We need each other to accomplish God’s kingdom work here on earth. You and I can’t possibly do this all by ourselves.

There is a passage in Hebrews 10 that is often quoted to encourage each other to attend church. Look at verses 24 and 25 and see what you observe there. “24 and let’s consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, 25 not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”

Do you want to know what I see there? I’m going to tell you anyway. I see “encourage one another in love and good deeds.” I see “encouraging one another.” It’s not just about not missing church. We need to be coming alongside each other. We need to be offering that “right hand of fellowship.” Why? Because the day is “drawing near.”

Paul has been talking a lot about allies, companions and partners in Galatians. I believe he wanted the Galatians to know that he was not a one man operation. He was co-laboring with Titus, Barnabas, Peter, James and John. And just like Paul, we need others to work alongside for the cause of Christ. Who is that person(s) in your life?

Thank You, Lord, for my partners in ministry all over the world.

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