The Acts of the Apostles, the history of the early church, by Luke the physician - Acts 21:8-14 comments: Paul and company stay with Philip the evangelist

 

Acts 21:8 ¶  And the next day we that were of Paul’s company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him. 9  And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy. 10  And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus. 11  And when he was come unto us, he took Paul’s girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. 12  And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13  Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. 14  And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.

 

Cornelius, the centurion in Acts 10 was from Caesarea. Caesarea Martima was built by Herod the Great to be a major port. It was the administrative center of the Roman Empire’s province of Judea. It is on the coast of the Mediterranean south of Haifa in present-day Israel. Caesarea is often called Caesarea Martima or Caesarea Palastinae to differentiate it from Caesarea Philippi on the Jordan River.

 

Philip the evangelist, it is said, was one of the seven, referring to the chosen deacons.

 

Acts 6:5  And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:

 

He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. This represents a perplexing conundrum for Fundament Baptists who think women are warranted in the Bible only to walk behind men, keep their heads down, and shut up. There are prominent women in the Bible who perform God’s ordained assignments that would surprise some and dismay some others.

 

Here is Deborah in Judges.

 

Judges 4:4  And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.

 

You should read the rest of Judges, chapter 4.

 

Consider Huldah the prophetess in 2Kings 22:14 and 2Chronicles 34:22 and her short sermon to the king’s men.

 

Perhaps we can consider Phebe, the servant from the Greek word from which we get the word Deacon in English, whom Paul says should be obeyed. Tradition says and the postscript to older versions of the King James Bible says that she delivered the letter to the Romans.

 

Romans 16:1 ¶  I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: 2  That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you: for she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also.

 

There were deaconesses in the early church of the first and second century.

 

As for evidence Pliny the Younger was the governor Bithynia in what we know today as Turkey, geographically Asia Minor. He wrote a letter about Christians to the Emperor Trajan around 115AD. Here is the content of what we have today. Paul could not go to Bithynia but Peter may have gone there.

Acts 16:7  After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.

1Peter 1:1  Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,

Here is one translation from the Latin between the two men.

“Pliny the Younger to the Emperor Trajan

It is my practice, my lord, to refer to you all matters concerning which I am in doubt. For who can better give guidance to my hesitation or inform my ignorance? I have never participated in trials of Christians. I therefore do not know what offenses it is the practice to punish or investigate, and to what extent. And I have been not a little hesitant as to whether there should be any distinction on account of age or no difference between the very young and the more mature; whether pardon is to be granted for repentance, or, if a man has once been a Christian, it does him no good to have ceased to be one; whether the name itself, even without offenses, or only the offenses associated with the name are to be punished.

Meanwhile, in the case of those who were denounced to me as Christians, I have observed the following procedure: I interrogated these as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment; those who persisted I ordered executed. For I had no doubt that, whatever the nature of their creed, stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy surely deserve to be punished. There were others possessed of the same folly; but because they were Roman citizens, I signed an order for them to be transferred to Rome.

Soon accusations spread, as usually happens, because of the proceedings going on, and several incidents occurred. An anonymous document was published containing the names of many persons. Those who denied that they were or had been Christians, when they invoked the gods in words dictated by me, offered prayer with incense and wine to your image, which I had ordered to be brought for this purpose together with statues of the gods, and moreover cursed Christ--none of which those who are really Christians, it is said, can be forced to do--these I thought should be discharged. Others named by the informer declared that they were Christians, but then denied it, asserting that they had been but had ceased to be, some three years before, others many years, some as much as twenty-five years. They all worshipped your image and the statues of the gods, and cursed Christ.

They asserted, however, that the sum and substance of their fault or error had been that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn and sing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god, and to bind themselves by oath, not to some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so. When this was over, it was their custom to depart and to assemble again to partake of food--but ordinary and innocent food. Even this, they affirmed, they had ceased to do after my edict by which, in accordance with your instructions, I had forbidden political associations. Accordingly, I judged it all the more necessary to find out what the truth was by torturing two female slaves who were called deaconesses. But I discovered nothing else but depraved, excessive superstition.

I therefore postponed the investigation and hastened to consult you. For the matter seemed to me to warrant consulting you, especially because of the number involved. For many persons of every age, every rank, and also of both sexes are and will be endangered. For the contagion of this superstition has spread not only to the cities but also to the villages and farms. But it seems possible to check and cure it. It is certainly quite clear that the temples, which had been almost deserted, have begun to be frequented, that the established religious rites, long neglected, are being resumed, and that from everywhere sacrificial animals are coming, for which until now very few purchasers could be found. Hence it is easy to imagine what a multitude of people can be reformed if an opportunity for repentance is afforded.

 

Trajan to Pliny the Younger

You observed proper procedure, my dear Pliny, in sifting the cases of those who had been denounced to you as Christians. For it is not possible to lay down any general rule to serve as a kind of fixed standard. They are not to be sought out; if they are denounced and proved guilty, they are to be punished, with this reservation, that whoever denies that he is a Christian and really proves it--that is, by worshiping our gods--even though he was under suspicion in the past, shall obtain pardon through repentance. But anonymously posted accusations ought to have no place in any prosecution. For this is both a dangerous kind of precedent and out of keeping with the spirit of our age.”(1)

(1)   http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/pliny.html. (accessed 3.28.2018).

 

Female deacons were also present in the early Baptist churches of the seventeenth century as it was thought unseemly for a man to minister to a single woman or widow.(2)

 

(2)   McBeth, H. Leon. The Baptist Heritage (Kindle Location 780). B&H Publishing. Kindle Edition.

 

This brings us to verses that seem to contradict these historical and Biblical facts. For instance, Paul wrote to the Corinthians;

 

1Corinthians 14:34 ¶  Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.

 

What is the context of that command?

 

  1Corinthians 14:26 ¶  How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying. 27  If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret. 28  But if there be no interpreter, let

him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God. 29  Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge. 30  If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace. 31  For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted. 32  And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. 33  For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

 

    34 ¶  Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 35  And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

 

  36 ¶  What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only? 37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write

unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 38  But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant. 39  Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues. 40  Let all things be done decently and in order.

 

The context is asking what was said in an unknown tongue during the church meeting. Notice in verse 28 that if there is no interpreter the man speaking should remain silent and speak to himself and to God but not the congregation.

 

However, women were not to teach men as that abrogated the spiritual responsibility a man has for the spiritual leadership of his family and in the Christian community. This should never be changed because of the psychology of men who will surrender their responsibility to their wives if given half the chance. That started with Adam.

 

1Timothy 2:11  Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12  But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.

 

But, the value of women as co-heirs in the grace of life is not diminished by the separate spheres of responsibility men and women are given.

 

1Peter 3:7  Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

 

Galatians 3:28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

 

And if you object to a woman voting in a church meeting then note that voting isn’t mandated in the New Testament letters of Paul as I can’t find a verse that says, “when the church votes…” So, we have liberty to do some things that fit our culture and time unless you feel we should meet before dawn on Sunday morning and then go to our jobs afterwards like the early Christians or that you should send your young man out to find a wife and tell him to marry the girl who offers to water his camels.

 

Back to the text, disciples, as noted in verse 4, warned Paul by the Spirit of God not to go to Jerusalem. Here Agabus of Judea who is mentioned in Acts 11:27 and 28 warning of a coming famine. Now, he is warning Paul, who is bound to push God’s permissive will rather than satisfy His perfect will. A stubborn man, that Paul, wouldn’t you say? Luke and the disciples at Caesarea plead with Paul but to no avail. They give up and simply ask that God’s will be done.