And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do. Acts 15:36
Let’s pretend for a few seconds that the apostle Paul had access to today’s technologies. Imagine him sitting at his computer, firing up his Skype application, and skimming through his list of contacts for Sergius Paulus of Paphos. Finding the contact, he makes a video call to the deputy. When Sergius Paulus comes on line, Paul greets him warmly, inquires as to his health, and then begins an in-depth discussion as to the state of the Assembly in Paphos. Paul gives his friend some wise advance concerning certain situations and certain members of the fellowship, and refers him to various pertinent passages of Scripture. As he signs off with a promise to check in again within a month or so, Paul remarks how easily he can stay in touch with folks in the Assemblies that he has seen planted. Well, it certainly wasn’t so easy back in the day, but it was just as important.
Preachers and missionaries feel a deep relationship with the Christians in places where they have been used to plant Assemblies and to help struggling Assemblies. To them, it is very important to stay in touch, as Paul said, to see how they do. But it is not just the preachers and Missionaries who have such a care and concern; it is shared very much with the overseers in the local Assemblies. These men all take a great interest in the spiritual welfare of the saints. They want to know whether there is growth in the lives of the individual Assemblies, whether there are conflicts among the believers, whether Gospel efforts are being pursued with zeal, whether the Word of God is being studied and followed. This is not a casual interest, but a deep and sincere burden that the Lord’s people are doing well in spiritual matters. Because it is the spiritual matters that matter.
When Paul wanted to go visit the Assemblies that he and Barnabas had seen planted, he was not so very concerned about whether the folks were sick or whether the men were all gainfully employed, although he would care about those things too. No, his real interest was in their spiritual welfare. He would want to know whether the overseers that he and Barnabas had identified were fulfilling their responsibilities. He would want to know whether the Assemblies were growing in their appreciation of the things of God, whether younger believers were maturing in their grasp of their responsibilities as Assembly members. Shepherds like Paul, and like the full-time workers among us today, and like Assembly elders, have a sincere care about these things. Our Assemblies would be in very great trouble if they did not.
There are people who really care about your Assembly and how it and its members are doing. In reality, we should all care. -Jim MacIntosh