Back in a previous millennium before the days of email, texting, Facetime, and Facebook, you would drop a postcard in the mail and let folks back home know about your vacation. These handy dandy cards came with some sort chamber of commerce picture of the place and a “wish you were here!” cheesy greeting. Let’s face it, most of the time you didn’t REALLY wish they were on vacation with you. The point was to make people insanely jealous.
Well our man Paul may be in Rome, but this is no vacation. He may be staying in Caesar’s Palace, but he’s not in the penthouse. Most likely, the apostle is in the basement. In the dungeon. He writes to his friends back in Philippi to make sure they tell everyone there that he says “hello!” He wants them to know that he’s far from lonely. Despite being in a Roman prison, but God has placed all sorts of fellow Christ followers around Paul. Greet believers wherever you are. There are more around you than you realize. The simple act of reaching out to fellow followers will let you know you’re never really alone.
Remember the scene. The apostle has spent nearly five years locked up after an angry mob nearly kills him at the temple in Jerusalem (Acts 21:27-36). He does time in Jerusalem (Acts 21:37), Caesarea Maritima (Acts 23:33-35), and, after one of the worst Mediterranean cruises on record, Rome (Acts 28:14-30). While he’s there, Paul writes a series of letters to churches in Colossae, Ephesus, and his buddy Philemon. Sometime before his release, he fires off one more note to some of his favorite folks on the planet. The church in Philippi. He’ll never forget his first crazy days when he brought the message of Jesus to Europe (Acts 16:12-40). He wants to make sure everyone there knows he’s doing just fine, thank you.
Paul wraps up this letter by telling the Philippians to “greet every saint in Christ Jesus” (v21). He certainly wants to make sure all his friends know that he says “hey” from Rome. But there’s more here than a generic shout out to his buddies in Macedonia. The apostle actually commands the church to make a point of greeting and building a relationship with each and every saint. The grammar in the original language is very specific. He could have very easily told them to greet all the believers. But he didn’t. The man from Tarsus instructs them to individually interact with each follower of Jesus.
It’s important to remember that churches are made up of individuals. Jesus lived and died for every person who walk through the front doors of your foyer. Every. Single. One. For you. For me. For the lady in the Lexus. For the dude in the Dodge. For the weird woman and strange man who sit in the back. Paul tells us to “greet every saint in Christ Jesus” (v21). The verb “greet” (Gr. aspazomai) means to literally embrace or draw to oneself. It’s the idea of treating someone affectionately. We’re not talking about some casual, mail-it-in kind of “howdy.” Interestingly, in his letter to the Roman church, the apostle instructs them, “Greet (Gr. aspazomai) one another with a holy kiss” (Rom 16:16). You can argue all you want about cultural context, but it seems pretty clear to me that public displays of affection among the followers of Jesus should be the standard.
If someone is a fellow believer, reach out to them. We’re not to pick and choose who we’re to greet. We’re not scouting the room, trying to pick out who we’re going to hug. If they’ve placed their faith in who Jesus is and what He’s done, that’s all we need to know. Don’t leave anyone out. This isn’t just about the people who like you or look like you. Jesus has bulldozed all the racial barriers. He’s crushed all the cultural walls. He’s knocked down every economic roadblock. If they’re saints, greet ’em up! And we’re not just talking about the awkward “meet and greet” part of the worship service.
Paul’s not the only one who sends his best. “The brothers who are with me greet you” (v21). We already know that his protege Tim is hanging with him in the Eternal City (Phil 1:1; 2:19-23). No surprise there. The apostle met the young gun in Lystra (Acts 16:1-3) on his second tour of the Mediterranean Rim. Tim joined Paul’s posse just before rolling into Philippi. These bros may include Epaphroditus, the fellow the Philippians sent to help the apostle in prison (Phil 2:25-29). There’s a good chance there are probably more guys than are mentioned by name. Paul writes about “most of the brothers” with him (Phil 1:14). This could include Aristarchus, John Mark, and Jesus Justus (Col 4:9-11). Chances are Tychicus and Onesimus would have already hit the road delivering letters to Colossae, Ephesus, and Philemon.
“All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household” (v22). It’s also clear that there are other followers of Jesus there. Now that they’ve greeted the saints back in Philippi, Paul passes along the greetings of the other saints in Rome. When he describes “those of Caesar’s household” (v22), he’s not just talking about members of the royal family. According to John MacArthur, this also “would include courtiers, princes, judges, cooks, food-tasters, musicians, custodians, builders, stablemen, soldiers, and accountants.” This would include the very prison guards assigned to keep an eye on the apostle. Earlier, he talked about the irony of how God is using his time behind bars as a means to spread the grace of Jesus in Rome. “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the Gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear” (Phil 1:12-14).
When Saint Paul talks about saints, he’s not talking about Drew Brees and the Who Dats in New Orleans. “Saints” literally means “holy ones.” While holiness certainly carries the idea of sinlessness and purity, the best idea here is that these followers of Jesus are different. You can tell them apart from everyone else in the Roman world. They live differently. They love differently. They work differently. How about you? Are you a “saint?” Are you a “holy one?” Do you stand out from the rest of the culture? When folks look at you, do they say “who dat?”
So how in the world has Paul made so many friends in Rome? Sure, he’s been in the slammer for a couple of years in the city, but that’s not the entire reason God has provided a wonderful support system for His apostle. You see, Paul has already written a letter to the church in Rome a few years back. Ironically, he told the Roman church that visiting the capital of the Empire was on his bucket list (Rom 15:22-29). He has a boatload of friends in Rome. In his letter to the Roman church, he says “hey” to not just Prisca and Aquila, but to 24 other individuals as well as two full families (Rom 16:3-15). No doubt that a lot of these same folks were wanted to send their greetings to folks back in Philippi.
There’s an old joke that asks about the difference between Presbyterians and Baptists. According to the punch line, Presbyterians will say “hello” to you in the liquor store. Paul encourages you and me to reach out and embrace the support structure that God has placed all around us. We don’t do life alone. We have brothers and sisters to encourage us, love us, and hold us accountable. Remember, following Jesus is a team sport. We’re not flying solo. There are no Lone Rangers for Christ. Reach out. They need you. You need them.
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