LOVED BY CHRIST
H. W. Knauss
Our brother spoke in his prayer of our sister being loved by all of us and by the Lord Himself.
I believe the Lord Jesus has an assessment of each one of us, and I believe the assessment the Lord would have of our sister is that she is one that He loved. In this chapter we get some view of the assessment of Christ. It may be the assessment of the apostle Paul, but yet it is truly the assessment of Christ. We can say that Phoebe was to Paul what our sister would be to us—one that he greatly loved. He spoke of her being a helper of many, and of himself.
And I believe I can use these words in relation to our sister, that she has been a helper of many, and of myself. I think the brethren in the aggregate could say this, that she has been a helper to each one of us. We loved her, and I think that would be Christ’s assessment.
Paul has the opportunity to commend Phoebe here, one whom he loved in truth, to commend her to Rome. She was going on a journey there, and Paul would commend her to the saints in such a way that she would be loved by them as he loved her. We also see how his affections expanded as he wrote this letter, so that he is able in a salutary way to have an assessment of the saints in that place. The way he speaks of them in the balance of the chapter is wonderful, and I think our sister’s movements among us drew out that kind of love in us. Thus there would be, through her labours of love, greater love amongst ourselves. We think of what our sister has been in the testimony. I believe there is a similarity between Phoebe and our sister in the way she has been held in our affections. Paul could exhort the brethren to care for Phoebe in a special way as a sister. I wonder if we have assisted our sister in the work as she has been amongst us. One would just ask this of the young people especially, as to whether they have assisted our sister in the ministry. Paul speaks of Phoebe as “minister”, a sister ministering. And our sister certainly ministered amongst us, and not just in a menial way, although she did that too in her untiring service to make the saints comfortable. Her hospitality was well known by us. But she ministered Christ to us every time we spoke to her. I had many occasions to sit down and speak with her and she constantly refreshed me.
believe that the Lord’s service to us at this time would be intensely personal. He has already served our sister in love. He has taken her to be with Himself. We sang of that in our hymn (Hymn 179) ‘To take one to Himself above’. Our sister has fallen asleep through Jesus; now He would strengthen us and comfort us in view of caring for her precious body in burial, awaiting the day when we shall have the final service of Christ when He will come with an assembling shout, and trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we who are alive shall be caught up together with them to meet Him in the air. What a day that will be, the final service of Christ! Our sister is awaiting that time, but in the meantime the Lord Jesus would comfort and strengthen us.
One feels that there is an exhortation to be left with us at this time, as to whether we are ready to walk as our sister has walked. What an example she has been for us—setting out the feminine features of the truth that are so precious to Christ. It is that side of things that delights
the heart of Christ, these feminine features coming to light here in a person’s walk. I think we can say that our sister has been a vital part of “the angel of the assembly” in this place. I think it is right to speak of it in that way, because the Lord Jesus Himself, in writing to the seven churches, writes to “the angel of the assembly” in each place, as if He would be speaking to persons who are ready to take on responsibility in relation to their walk, in view of setting out the features of the assembly which so delight His heart. I believe our sister has set that out.
May the Lord bless these words.