Another thing that should affect us, as having regard to this matter of quality, is the place the body of Christ has.

• Saul of Tarsus has to learn that in attacking the saints he is attacking Jesus, the body of Christ here on earth. That is another thing that should be borne in mind in proceeding with our enquiry, the awful solemnity of railing and speaking against the brethren.
  • The Lord says to Saul, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest".

• What is to be noted in the opening of the chapter is the conjunction 'but'. Over against the prosperity in the service and the testimony, as we were looking at it this morning in relation to Philip, the apparent evidence that God is blessing His people, and souls were being added to the testimony, it says,
  • "But Saul, still breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord".

• He had stood at the feet of Stephen, and looked on, and seen the glory that had shone in Stephen, and the spirit of grace that bore with the opposition that was present, and it says, "But Saul, still breathing out threatenings and slaughter". Notice these words, "but" and "still", and then notice,
  • "But as he was journeying, it came to pass that he drew near to Damascus; and suddenly there shone round about him a light out of heaven".

• Notice how heaven is intervening in this matter –
  • "and falling on the earth he heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest".

• Saul thought he was just having to do with ordinary men and women, he thought he was doing what was right. He thought he was even doing God service, so blind was he, so perverted in his way. He thought he was doing God service, and the Lord has to arrest him as He does here, "why dost thou persecute me?"

• What there is in this island in the various localities, the saints as set together, is the body of Christ, and think of the awfulness of persecuting that. How the Lord comes in here, and He says,
  • "Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me?"

• All this surrounds the matter of quality in regard to this special vessel that the Lord refers to as an elect vessel.

L.C. Does the fact that Saul has his eye on men and women indicate that the enemy is quite aware of what God has before Him?

S.McC. Very good; men and women, that is excellent, the component parts of the assembly. Not only is he after the men, but the women, as if the arch enemy was skilled in his designs and methods and was out to destroy the thought of the assembly. It is interesting what you point out.

S.T. Does the "way" here speak of the way according to God, the way of christianity?

S.McC. That is it. It was an expression that was used in those days to describe christianity, and christianity is not a static matter, but a moving matter.

• What marks those who go out of fellowship is that you will find they are the same today as they were twenty-five years ago. If you look at the divisions, those who have left the fellowship, or any who leave the fellowship, you will find that they are just the same today as they were when they went out, but christianity involves "the way" which suggests movement.

H.F. Would you say that Saul reached his limit here as representing the spirit of Jerusalem, but heaven intervened in power, in the power of grace?

S.McC. Yes, that is interesting. He reached his limit. It is marvellous how the Lord suffered the saints to be persecuted. Saul might have said 'it is evident that the Lord is not putting His hand upon me, and that I am being helped in my service of persecuting the saints', but he reaches his limit.

• In Isaiah 8: 7-8 there is a reference to Immanuel's land, and it is very interesting as to the waters of the proud Assyrian.
  • "The Lord will bring up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory; and he shall mount up over all his channels, and go over all his banks: and he shall pass through Judah; he shall overflow it and go further, he shall reach even to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel!"

• Notice, "he shall mount up over all his channels" – he is going beyond the banks. Notice too, "he shall pass through Judah" – God's sanctuary as Psalm 114 says, and notice these words, "he shall overflow it and go further, he shall reach even to the neck". Notice that – to the neck, but no further; thus far and no further.

• Even to the neck but he does not go over the head, the waters do not go over the head; there is a limit reached as God puts His hand upon matters. The neck suggests that there is a limit reached so that the saints are not completely overthrown or overpowered by the matter. God allows the enemy to go a certain distance, but thus far and no further.

• I think our hearts should be affected by the Lord Jesus thus dealing with this insolent overbearing man. Think of the audacity of a man to insult the saints, and to speak against them, and think of what the Lord had to say to this man,
  • "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest"

• – not 'whom thou speakest against', but "whom thou persecutest". That is the word that fits in with the occasion. He is persecuting the saints and the Lord is putting His hand upon him.

F.H. Would the intervention from heaven be sudden, and would that indicate the feelings of heaven in regard of it?

S.McC. I think it does. Heaven is considering this matter. Think of all the way the saints had been persecuted in the chapters before this. Think of how heaven had allowed the enemy to work and to move, and the wonderful attitude of grace.

• The government of God had held its hand, and stayed its hand, but now the Lord Jesus intervenes personally, not through Philip, the evangelist, or through Stephen, although there must have been some impression there.

• But the Lord says, 'I am taking a personal hand in this matter', and He brings down this insolent, overbearing man, as Paul refers to himself many years later.

B.B. Would you say a word about the light out of heaven? Every time Paul refers to this he mentions this light in a different way.

S.McC. He does, his appreciation of what reached him and touched him seems to grow. That is right, and in keeping with "the way", so that we are not the same next year as we are this year, we are growing in the appreciation of the love and glory of the One who has reached us and brought us down.

J.R. Stephen saw the glory of God and Jesus. And the Person speaking here says, "I am Jesus". Is it the way of grace overabounding?

S.McC. That is it. The Lord is here in this matter. Paul refers to it later, he had a personal appearing. This is not a mere manifestation of glory – not that we are belittling that – but he says in 1 Corinthians 9: 1,

• "Am I not an apostle? have I not seen Jesus our Lord?"

• referring to the fact that it was a personal appearing, the Lord taking in hand this matter. We can count on the Lord in regard to these matters, that while He allows them to go a long way, He will eventually intervene in His own way and time.

G.S.R. Do you think the Lord stayed His hand until now to impress Paul with the capacity of men and women who could suffer like Stephen?

S.McC. I think that is excellent, and I think it should touch us, the fact that Saul would get an impression now in regard of all these persons he had persecuted and spoken insultingly against, the wonderful way they had borne it, and the grace of the dispensation that had been manifested.

• He would get an impression of how the saints could suffer and the capacity in the saints to suffer, and the Spirit is helping them. I think it helps to see that in the matter of opposition the Lord is linking Himself with the saints. We often refer to it in the Supper.

• On Lord's day morning we were thinking of it. All the disturbances we have had, the disturbance this afternoon in the way the saints have been spoken against. Yet how the Lord linked on with us in the Supper, prepared to identify Himself with us and to see us through, and I think it is wonderful to take account of the position in this light.

L.C. Is it not remarkable that in the section relating to Stephen and in this section the saints are described as disciples? Previously it is the apostles, the eleven, and the assembly, but here it is disciplined ones in whom quality is to shine.

S.McC. I think that is good and helps. The matter of disciples speaks of those trained and disciplined, and we have to become accustomed to this kind of thing that the way in christianity involves following in a disciplined path, where things are definitely pursued. That is the thought of disciples – followers of the Lord.

S.W.R. The thought of accusing comes in. Is that definitely satanic?

S.McC. So that none of us want to be on the side of Satan in accusing the brethren. Every one of us should seek to be free from that kind of thing, and the Lord in bringing down Saul impresses him with the universal idea as to the body.

• Notice how the universal idea and the local idea go together.

• He first draws his attention to the body, which is the catholic idea, then in verse 6,
  • "But rise up and enter into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do".

• That is, his attention now is called to what is in Damascus. The Lord has not only His body in a universal way, which Saul was attacking, but He has what is in each of our cities, what is set up in the light of the assembly which we are to give attention to.

• Paul's ministry brings in the idea of local assemblies. The local assembly had not come into view before except in Jerusalem, which was more the metropolitan position. But the idea of the local setting is now coming into view and the Lord is stressing it, and Paul is to get this impression at the outset of the dignity of the saints in Damascus.

H.F. Saul learnt for the first time that the saints are viewed on earth as the Lord's body, and the Head is in heaven, so that he would have a dignified impression of the saints.

S.McC. Well, I think he would get that impression, but it is specially to stress the Lord's identification with the saints here right in this scene. The Lord's identification with the saints here in the sphere of testimonial suffering.

D.M.D. Would the idea of the city be that we would understand what God has there, and be subject and work it out together?

S.McC. That is the whole point. Great man as Saul of Tarsus was, he had to learn that there were those in the city of Damascus that God had under His hand, and the Lord Jesus had under His hand, and he was to take orders from them, not from the chief priests in Jerusalem.

• He was to get directions from them, as it says,
  • "it shall be told thee what thou must do".

• It is not a question of arguing or reasoning about the matter, but "it shall be told thee what thou must do". It is a great matter for us to learn that, it enters into quality, and into our development.

• We are to see that no one of us is any greater than the assembly, the assembly is the greatest thought, and we are to be subject to the greatest thought.

G.S.R. In Isaiah 11: 16 we have,

• "And there shall be a highway for the remnant of his people which will be left".

• Does that correspond with the bringing in of Paul? Are we treading that highway now?

S.McC. I should say so, the highway is before us, and later in Isaiah we have

• "a highway shall be there and a way, and it shall be called, The way of holiness", Isaiah 35: 8.

• It is a great thing to keep that in mind, the highway upon which everything travels, "and it shall be called, The way of holiness". It is the highway of holiness, and we can see it here in this chapter.

H.D. "But rise up and enter into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do".

• Saul has now a moral right to enter as coming under the sway of the Lord.

S.McC. Yes, the Lord has brought him down, and the Lord says, Now the right place for you is in the local gathering at Damascus for the moment.

• We want to get hold of that, what the local gathering is, and especially to see that the Lord has full confidence in the local gathering.

• Saul might have said, they have made plenty of mistakes, they do not know what they are doing, but Saul does not say that. He had been brought down completely, and that is what new birth does for us, and when the Lord comes in in power there is no more confidence left, as with Saul.

S.W.R. Would you distinguish between 'economy' and 'dispensation'?

S.McC. Oh, well I think in certain ways both mean the same, it depends on how you use it. The economy goes beyond the dispensation.

• If we are speaking of the economy into which divine Persons have come, that would begin with the coming of the Lord Jesus into manhood, and goes on right into eternity
  • but if we speak of the economy of grace, it is an equivalent term to the dispensation of grace.

• Economy just means the way things are administered. You have the economy in Kingston in the Jamaican Government. We have the economy in Washington – the way things work out in the government.

• If we allude to it in relation to the economy into which divine Persons have come, of course it goes beyond the dispensation.

This section from verses 8 to 21 is most interesting as showing us how the different features of the economy are operated to help us, and it is a remarkable thing that the first thing Saul saw apparently was a brother. It is a great thing to get a right view of the brethren in that light.

A.E.McC. Was there not quality with the brother? I was thinking of his obedience to the Lord. Saul is told to enter into the city, and Ananias is also told what he must do.

S.McC. Yes, and it is very touching to see how Ananias, truly one like ourselves, has certain difficulties, and how the Lord helps him, and he moves in such a way. He is a remarkable person, Ananias. It says in verse 10,

• "There was a certain disciple in Damascus by name Ananias. And the Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, here am I, Lord. And the Lord said to him, Rise up and go into the street which is called Straight, and seek in the house of Judas one by name Saul, he is of Tarsus".

• It is interesting the sensitiveness of Ananias, and I think that ought to raise something with us. If we are out in the world and going on with things casually in the testimony, and have not much interest in assembly life, we can hardly expect to get these touches that will bring us into the operations of the economy.

• But Ananias was in the life of the testimony and he went. He was available, and that is a word to us as to whether we are all available.

B.B. Ananias must have had a humble spirit when the Lord could be free to tell him that a younger brother was going to be an elect vessel.

S.McC. Very good. Here was a young man coming into line with the testimony. He was going to take a lead in relation to the ministry, and the Lord indicates that to Ananias.

• "And the Lord said to him, Go, for this man is an elect vessel to me, to bear my name before both nations and kings and the sons of Israel: for I will shew to him how much he must suffer for my name".

• Now, notice this. A great many have difficulty as to appealing to Caesar, and as to how Paul appealed to Caesar. But the remarkable thing is that the Lord told him that he would come before Caesar and Agrippa –
  • "to bear my name before both nations and kings"

    at the very beginning, at his conversion.

• I think, as you say, the thought of quality comes out in Ananias in the way he moves immediately to serve in relation to the divine end as to this choice vessel.

L.C. The Lord adds, "I will shew to him how much he must suffer for my name", the "I" is emphatic.

• Does that suggest that we are entirely in the Lord's hand as to this matter of discipline, when the development of quality is in mind?

S.McC. I think so. It is a remarkable statement. "I will shew to him how much he must suffer for my name". Think of what enters into these words.

• We would have thought that if any vessel would have been free from suffering, Paul would have been as carrying the burdens of the assembly. But let us remember that in these matters it is well to take account of the capacity in the saints to suffer, and this would enter into this statement in regard of Saul of Tarsus.

• The Lord is going to give him a view of how much he must suffer, as if the Lord has great pleasure in this matter of capacity in the saints for suffering, for the idea of a vessel suggests capacity.

• We have limited the thought of the elect vessel to Paul ministering, but I think it would be well for us to think a little more of the elect vessel on the line of suffering, the capacity of this great vessel to suffer. He says in Colossians 1: 24,
  • "Now, I rejoice in sufferings for you, and I fill up that which is behind of the tribulations of Christ in my flesh, for his body, which is the assembly".

• That is not atoning sufferings, but the idea of testimonial suffering, and the Lord fits the vessel, as it were, for suffering.

S.T. Philippians 1: 29, 30 reads, "Because to you has been given, as regards Christ, not only the believing on him but the suffering for him also, having the same conflict which ye have seen in me, and now hear of in me".

S.McC. That is a beautiful word. Mr. Taylor recently in New York drew attention to that verse referring to "has been given".

• We are liable to think of suffering coming upon us as a calamitous kind of thing, but the way it is put in Philippians it is a wonderful favour conferred upon us that we should suffer for His name. It has been given to us not only to believe, but to suffer for His name.

• It is a great thing to get into our minds, and I think it is a comfort, at least it is a comfort to my soul, in the measure of suffering which we have, to think of that – it has been given to us.

E.W. Timothy was to take his share in suffering.

S.McC. That is a very interesting passage, and a word to all of us. We are not to shrink from suffering or to avoid it.

S.W.R. Is it a matter that we can glory in? Paul says in Galatians 6: 14,

• "Far be it from me to boast save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world".

S.McC. Yes, I think we should learn to do that. Paul says in that same chapter,

• "I bear in my body the brands of the Lord Jesus", verse 17

• – a remarkable statement. What can judaisers say about that kind of vessel? They did not suffer much, these judaistic teachers. They were working under the hand of the enemy to hinder in regard of the truth as to christianity,
  • but Paul faces the whole matter unflinchingly in the very place where it reared its head – Jerusalem, and he calls attention to his sufferings in that way.

• We are not only to be like Christ in glory, but now in suffering here below. We shall be like Him above, we shall see Him as He is. It will be in a moment, and how we long for it, but in the present moment we are to be like Him, like Him now.

• Stephen was like Him, Paul was like Him, and we are to be like Him. When people insult us, when men do despite to us, or do not give us what is properly due to us, in whatever sphere it may be, we are to be like our Master, our heavenly Master.

G.S.R. The suffering and the glory are connected. The more Paul suffers, the more he apprehends the glory, so that he speaks of the light in a greater way each time.

S.McC. It is in these chapters where he is bound and in chains that he brings out his ever increasing apprehension of the light. It is good to see that as the sufferings are intensified, his appreciation and apprehension of grace increases.

H.D. Do the sufferings produce fragrance for God, a sweet savour to God?

• "For we are a sweet odour of Christ to God", 2 Corinthians 2: 15.

S.McC. And that is said in the great epistle of suffering, 2 Corinthians. The whole epistle in a remarkable way brings out sufferings, the sufferings of Christ, and of the apostles. In chapter 1 he says,

• "even as the sufferings of the Christ abound towards us, so through the Christ does our encouragement also abound", verse 5.

  Not just one or two, but they "abound".

O.L. In the prison at Philippi, Paul and Silas at midnight

• "in praying, were praising God with singing", Acts 16: 25.

S.McC. Very good, showing the spiritual quality in these men, like to ourselves, that in the prison, in such sufferings and testings, the service of God was going on. It is a wonderful testimony to the quality in these vessels.

Now we must go on to chapter 11. We will see now how this thought of quality is increasing in that the disciples are first called christians, and we have the first mention of their being "gathered together" – gathered.

• Mr. Taylor was saying in Indianapolis recently that the word 'gathering' was better than 'meeting', and it comes in here:
  • "gathered together in the assembly", verse 26.

• Another thing to be noted, which we did not refer to, is verse 20,
  • "But there were certain of them, Cyprians and Cyrenians, who entering into Antioch spoke to the Greeks also, announcing the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus".

• That is a very interesting thing, for the Greeks were filled with Alexander the Great, and the mighty exploits of that wonderful general in his thirties, but a youth. What domination he had, how wonderful his exploits were, and the Greeks were filled with Alexander.

• The disciples were scattered abroad, and they announced the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus.

J.R. How do you understand the title "Lord Jesus"?

S.McC. It refers to the excellence of the Person, the One whom God has honoured and glorified. Jesus is the One whom men set aside, and slighted, and disallowed,

• but Lord Jesus particularly alludes to God's act in glorifying that blessed Man. It is also a great Pauline title. Paul uses it much in his letters.

J.R. Stephen was the first to say, "Lord Jesus".

• "Lord Jesus receive my spirit".

S.McC. Showing how interesting the setting is there. In the midst of suffering the glory is shining and we find the appellation first on the lips of a disciple.

• Luke uses it, although we may say Luke alone of the evangelists brings us the term, for he speaks of the disciples not finding the body of the Lord Jesus, but Stephen was the first to say "Lord Jesus".

E.C.L. Does that precious name bring in the Holy Spirit?

• 1 Corinthians 12: 3 says, "No one can say, Lord Jesus, unless in the power of the Holy Spirit".

S.McC. That is to be noted. It requires the Spirit of God to say it rightly.

• You may watch persons and hear how they speak of divine Persons, and how they address God, and speak of God. You will find that some are outside of the dispensation altogether, and it is betrayed in the way they speak of Him.

• "Lord Jesus" is one title that requires the Holy Spirit to use rightly.

• He officially is in the place of Lord. It is well to bear that in mind, that while we may refer to the Father as Lord, and to the Spirit as Lord, the Lord Jesus is officially in the place of Lord, He has been made Lord and Christ. That term officially belongs to the Lord Jesus.

S.T. Does this teaching for a whole year bring out quality in the disciples?

S.McC. Yes. It would be the whole year; spring-time, harvest, summer and winter would all be encompassed in this year.

E.C.L. Barnabas had seen quality in Saul and he goes to seek him out.

S.McC. Very good. Mr Taylor has referred to Barnabas as the unjealous introducer of his more gifted brother Saul. It is a wonderful thing to see that spirit in any of us.

• It may be a much younger man, but love walking in an unjealous way makes room for more gifted men, and that is a beautiful spirit, and it brings out quality in Barnabas. The Spirit of God says of him,
  • "he was a good man and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith", verse 24.

• He was a man of quality, and he was certainly that here in the way he brings in Saul.

We might finish with a word as to Acts 13 to show how quality is constantly increasing. So that we get in the beginning of this last section of the Acts – for the book of the Acts is divided into three sections – those who read the Synopsis will find that out.

1. Acts 1 is the first section, which refers to the time the Lord Jesus was with His disciples in the days before He ascended up into heaven.

2. Then chapters 2 to 12 form another section of the book, where the operations of the Spirit of God are brought before us, and especially His independent operations, independent of Jerusalem in the bringing in of the Ethiopian eunuch and Cornelius.

3. Now in chapter 13 to the end of the book we have this last section in which the great work of Paul is to come before us, and chapter 13 gives us the thought of increase in quality.

• We find that there are others there who have gift and ability in Antioch, and Antioch as the base and centre of the operations amongst the uncircumcised comes before us.

G.S.R. Does this correspond with Ephesians 4, the persons are the gifts? Is it to stress the value of the gifts in a locality and in the assembly?

S.McC. I think it is. What a rich locality Antioch must have been in the way they sat together.

• The way they were together, despite their gift and ability, is interesting. Instead of vying with one another, as at Corinth, they were ministering to the Lord and fasting.

• I think it brings out the quality of these men that instead of each man looking upon his own things he was thinking about the Lord – ministering to the Lord, and fasting, and the Holy Spirit now formally comes into this matter.

L.C. Throughout the book up to this point the thought of being filled with the Holy Spirit seems to be prominent. Even to Paul, Ananias said,

• "be filled with the Holy Spirit".

• Is it that the Spirit may be free as filling the vessel and then filling out the whole position?

S.McC. That is it, and it is important to see that – filled with the Spirit. It is a great matter the way the Spirit takes things in hand in regard of all these choice vessels.

• I think we should think more of this matter in view of what the Lord may have before Him, and what the Spirit may have before Him in the finishing of the dispensation.

E.C.L. Is that why in Ephesians Paul says,

• "be filled with the Spirit", Ephesians 5: 18?

• Is it that we should take in the full scope of God's thoughts?

S.McC. I think so, and be sustained in the position of our blessing as it is presented in that letter.

J.R. May we look for development on that line in our localities today, where the service of God is going on?

S.McC. I think we should, and I think it is apparent, and it is wonderful to see, the way ability is coming to light amongst us. How much there is, and the Lord is helping, and the Spirit is helping.

• It should be an encouragement to every young man and woman here to lay themselves out to be available in relation to this great matter, because there is much to be done and room for all.
  • Moses said, "Would that all Jehovah's people were prophets", Numbers 11: 29,

• and that should be the attitude and spirit of every one of us in this matter.

H.W. Was the Spirit of God acting sovereignly here when He said,

• "Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them"?

S.McC. Yes, He is in complete control of things in the assembly, and He has marked off these two men, and that shows too, something we have all to make way for – the idea of divine sovereignty.

• There was apparently no feeling with these other brothers that Barnabas and Saul should have been set forward.
  • Divine Persons have a right in Their sovereignty to dispose of things and persons as They see fit.

H.D. So that the Spirit takes on the first and the last mentioned in verse 1.

S.McC. Very interesting, showing it is not a matter of alphabetical order. How do the brethren follow through the preaching of the word of God? Do they look up a book alphabetically and say he preached two weeks ago and it is his turn now?

• It is a question of ability and what is best suited to the matter on hand, so that it is not a question of alphabetical order, nor numerical order, but it is the first and the last.

• The word of the Lord Jesus, "many first shall be last, and the last first", Mark 10: 31, comes out very much in these two.

E.C.L. Do we see quality in the assembly here, and quality in Paul coming out in conflict?

S.McC. That is very important to see. As Paul moves out into the public position he meets this terrible element.

• "And having passed through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a certain man a magician, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus, who was with the proconsul Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. He, having called Barnabas and Saul to him, desired to hear the word of God

  " But Elymas the magician (for so his name is by interpretation) opposed them, seeking to turn away the proconsul from the faith.

  "But Saul, who also is Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixing his eyes upon him, said, O full of all deceit and all craft: son of the devil, enemy of all righteousness; wilt thou not cease perverting the right paths of the Lord?

  "And now behold, the Lord's hand is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell upon him a mist and darkness; and going about he sought persons who should lead him by the hand.

  "Then the proconsul, seeing what had happened, believed, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord".

• He had to face the magician – one who juggled things around and would make you believe that one thing was another thing, and that something was so, that was not so – a magician. He opposed them, and this is in the dispensation of grace.

• It might be well to finish with that solemn word, that, while it is the dispensation of grace, the government of God goes through, and is always against evil, and promoting what is good

• It is always against evil in whatever nation, or whatever individual it may be, and the wheels of God's government turn slowly, but surely, and that is a solemn thing to consider.

We have been helped in recent times to see the remarkable place this chapter has. The more you read it and pursue it verse by verse the more you are impressed with the quality that appears in it, especially in those who lead as well as in the assembly itself.

• It is a great matter that there should be spiritual quality in those who lead among the saints. If there is not spiritual quality in those who lead, we may have damaging results and defects among the saints. Issues may be undefined and beclouded.

• But what shines in chapter 15 in these men who come before us, Paul, Barnabas, Peter and James and others, is the remarkable spiritual quality that marks them, and especially we are to note too in this section the idea of confirmation of the assemblies.

In chapter 14: 22 we have "establishing the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to abide in the faith".

• At the end of chapter 15 we have,
  • "confirming the assemblies", verse 41,

    and at the beginning of chapter 16

    "the assemblies therefore were confirmed" verse 5.

• These are features we are to take account of, and especially is it salutary for those who serve the saints in any measure to keep in mind that
  • the prime object in ministry is to build up – not to overthrow and divide, but to confirm, and it is a great thing that we should be confirmed in our gatherings.

• It is remarkable as Paul's ministry comes into the ascendency in this book that confirmation of the assemblies is stressed. We should look for confirmation on that line. But in this section in Acts 15 we get
  • "chosen men",

    and "leading men among the brethren",

    and "our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have given up their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ".

• All that is an intensification of the subject of our enquiry, quality in the assembly and especially in those who give a lead among the brethren. It is important that there should be those who give a lead, and that quality should be in such.

• It is an important matter that in all the gatherings those who take a leading part should be consistent with the truth, otherwise the truth may be held in disrepute.

G.S.R. "It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us".

• Is that a supreme expression of quality in the assembly then?

S.McC. I would say it was. The fact that they linked a divine Person, the Holy Spirit, with them in this great matter is stressing quality that is now arrived at in administrative action.

• Looking over the years, we have to take account of the fact that the gatherings for care often lacked a good deal of quality. But now the Lord is calling attention to the beloved sisters, and has brought them into the matter.

• This thought of quality is to be intensified, and I do not think we shall find in the gatherings for care the same outbreak of feeling, or unrefined expression, perhaps uncouth expressions, as may have been in times before.

O.M.R. In verse 6 it says, "the apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter"–

• they were those who gave a lead. Is it distinct from verse 22 where it is
  • "the apostles and … elders, with the whole assembly"?

S.McC. It would look as if, from the way we formerly have taken account of it, without looking into it too specifically that verse 6 implies a different meeting. Notice in verse 4,

• "and being arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the assembly, and the apostles and elders".

  Then in verse 6, "and the apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter. And much discussion having taken place, Peter, standing up".

  Then in verse 12, "and all the multitude kept silence",

• showing that verse 6 is not a separate meeting as we have been accustomed to think.

• Verse 6 might appear at the first reading to imply a different meeting, but as we read the context we see it is not a different meeting, because verse 12 says "all the multitude", not the apostles and elders.

• It is a matter in verse 6 of the apostles and elders taking a lead in the discussion which would always be comely in the gatherings for care, that there are those who have certain moral authority.

• We do not have apostles today, nor official elders, but we have what is authoritative in the assembly on the principle of experience, and we need to make room for that in our gatherings for care. It does not imply that everybody has something to say, and should say something on a matter, but those with experience with God would give a good lead.

O.M.R. I think we have recently been helped on that, and what you say greatly confirms the matter, that there were those who were really giving a lead and seeing about the matter actively and audibly.

S.McC. That is it, while the great governing feature in the chapter is the assembly. Then we find in those who are able to help the saints a remarkable lead.

• They employ the Scriptures, and have a sound judgment, and a sound application of principles based on the word of God, and all this enters into the matter of quality in those gathered for care.

O.E.F. Would you say the word as to the angels of the assemblies in Revelation, would [that] be the Spirit appealing to something of quality there?

S.McC. Well, to those in responsibility – the responsible element which is always taken account of, however difficult the position may seem to be.

J.R. In regard to confirming the assemblies, is the current ministry as to the Person of Christ and the assembly necessary for that?

S.McC. It is remarkable that this thought of confirming the assemblies comes in in relation to the Pauline ministry. Peter's ministry does not bring it before us, but Paul's ministry does.

A.E.McC. Does quality in these persons stand out in contrast to those mentioned in verse 5,

• "some of those who were of the sect of the Pharisees, who believed, rose up from among them, saying that they ought to circumcise them and enjoin them to keep the law of Moses".

• Some went out from among them later.

S.McC. That is how the truth stands. As you read Galatians with Acts 15 it gives us Paul's personal account of the matter. Remarkable things come in, and it shows how Paul was not afraid, nor stood in awe of those who seemed to have a place.

• There were those he had regard for, who gave him the right hand of fellowship, who were conspicuous as pillars.

• I think in a crisis where an issue as to the truth or as to principle is involved, you will always find that what is not in accordance with the truth will show itself, and those that the Lord is approving will be manifest.

J.W. Would we see spiritual quality in Joshua.

• "Jehovah spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' attendant, saying, Moses my servant is dead; and now, rise up, go over this Jordan, thou and all this people, into the land which I give unto them", Joshua 1: 1-2.

S.McC. Yes, that is so. Moses was a remarkable servant, and Joshua was a remarkable servant. Notice how Jehovah said, "Moses my servant is dead".

• Attention has been drawn recently to the fact that it is not good to say that a believer or a servant of the Lord has passed away. God does not say that, He does not say 'Moses has passed away', but "Moses my servant is dead", or as we may say in New Testament language has fallen asleep.

• Moses was a wonderful servant, and Joshua was a wonderful servant, and it is interesting to see how God comes in to confirm Joshua in regard of carrying on, and God would confirm all the younger brethren as to carrying on.
  • "Be strong and courageous, for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I have sworn unto their fathers to give them", verse 6.

• Think of the brethren in this place, and in other parts of the world who have suffered and stood for the truth, and it is a great thing to be prepared to carry on. It does not matter what is coming up, God will strengthen our hands to carry on, we who are younger.

L.C. The matter of choice comes in here in the beginning of the section, "chosen men from among them". In the case of Stephen it was,

• "Look out therefore, brethren, from among yourselves seven men, well reported of, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom", Acts 6: 3.

• Would that indicate that as we move on in faith we would see quality showing itself among the saints?

S.McC. I am sure that is so. We need to be on the qui vive spiritually as to that, to see what is coming in as light. We should look over the ground in our cities and take account of what is there and make room for it, and make the most of it.

• The Spirit of God has indited this passage,
  • "Then it seemed good to the apostles and to the elders, with the whole assembly, to send chosen men from among them with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch, Judas called Barsabas and Silas, leading men among the brethren".

• We want to see what quality lies in that. Then we read verses 25 and 26,
  • "our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have given up their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ".

• "Given up their lives", the Pauline stream and current as we move in it will bring us face to face with this. Paul says in chapter 20: 24,
  • "But I make no account of my life as dear to myself, so that I finish my course".

    "Men who have given up their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ".

• Many of us could perhaps have been far more prosperous in the world had it not been for the call of the testimony. We have to see what Christ and the assembly involves, and what living in the stream of the Pauline ministry involves. It is the principle of giving up our lives in the world.

H.D. Would the way the word 'men' is repeated call attention to the feature of true manhood?

S.McC. That is the point that the reference in Acts 15 has in mind, that manhood should come to light. Men suggests those who are fully developed in their faculties and senses. I think we shall see more and more in the light of Acts 15 quality among the brethren and in the assembly.

J.R. Would it be seen in our care meetings?

S.McC. That is what I am thinking about, that leadership really shines, not just in giving an address or preaching the word of God, but it really shines in matters of conflict, and in the matters of the truth connected with the gathering for care.

D.M.D. These brethren go with Paul,

• "chosen men from among them with Paul and Barnabas",

  and then "Judas called Barsabas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren",

• as if they were taking on the Pauline ministry and supporting it.

S.McC. That is it, and it is a great thing for all of us because christendom sets the Pauline ministry aside.

• We have to see the proper place it has in relation to Christ and the assembly, because it is remarkable in this chapter, when you look into it at the beginning especially, to see who is causing joy among the brethren.

• Certainly not the judaistic leaders, they were bringing in distress and burdens more than the brethren could bear. But it says of Paul and Barnabas,
  • "They therefore, having been set on their way by the assembly, passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, relating the conversion of those of the nations. And they caused great joy to all the brethren", Acts 15: 3.

• What did they cause great joy by? By relating the work of God, and all that God had wrought with them.

• As someone once said, The judaising men were doing all the talking. They were not out in the work with all its diverse sufferings, but were doing all the talking in Jerusalem, but the talkers were met by the workers and the position was secured by the workers, those who were working with God.

• You will always find that persons who talk too much and do not put their hands to the work do not cause joy among the brethren, but those who put their hands to the work, do.

D.B. Scripture does not mention the names of the judaising talkers.

S.McC. I think that is significant. All the men who were honoured, their names are given; those who were upsetting the souls of the disciples, their names are not given, but we can see how much is made of these men who have given up their lives.

• It is always an advantage to have persons of spiritual and moral influence who can give a good lead, and the great thing is to make room for them.

• I am not speaking of an official lead. A brother may claim to give a lead because, maybe, he has been a certain time breaking bread, but what this chapter is stressing is men who have moral quality.

• They had apostolic authority, delegated authority, but they had moral authority. As James says, "Brethren, listen to me". Wonderful man, James, he was a leader in the assembly at Jerusalem apparently, and he was a remarkable man.

What is to be noted before going on to chapter 16 is the unity in the ministry, unity among those in the assembly, and among those who were giving a lead. Notice what James says in verse 13-15,

• "Brethren, listen to me: Simon has related how God first visited to take out of the nations a people for his name. And with this agree the words of the prophets".

• He is not looking for something that disagrees. What shines in this chapter is that the brethren are moving in the current of what the Spirit is saying and stressing what agrees. "With this agree the words of the prophets".

A.E.McC. A legal outlook would restrict. They go back to Moses all the time.

S.McC. That is it, legality is always restrictive, and we want to be saved from it, because the error of legality is worse than the error of the Corinthians.

• We sometimes think that fornication, and lying and stealing are terrible sins, and by the standards and principles of human and natural propriety we shrink from them.

• But take a person who is moving on the line of judaistic principles – Galatian error – which is more heinous than Corinthian licentiousness. There is no thought of a holy kiss in Galatians, whereas in the midst of all the worldliness at Corinth Paul brings in a holy kiss.

• We are oftentimes deceived by pious, godly persons who may really oppose the truth on judaistic lines. Yet we may have a definite judgment of those who have fallen into the sins named, and think of them as far below these pious persons opposing the truth.

• But the sin of the pious person who opposes the truth on judaistic lines is worse than the Corinthian sin.

It is interesting to see in chapter 15: 40 that they were

• "committed by the brethren to the grace of God",

• not to the work of God, but to the grace of God.
  • "And he passed through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the assemblies".

• That was the line Paul was on, and that is the line we ought to be on, confirming the souls of the disciples as it is said earlier.

S.T. So you would say they received the truth with readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures, they were not criticising.

S.McC. Yes, the first thing about the Bereans, that is often lost sight of is that they received

• "the word with all readiness of mind, daily searching the scriptures if these things were so", Acts 17: 11.

• We often make out that they searched the Scriptures before they received the word, but that is not the way it is put. They received it first, and then they searched to get confirmation. I think it is a great thing to have that attitude of mind and heart in receiving the truth as it comes to us.

• When there is a spirit of readiness to receive the word we always get helped in the truth, but immediately you get a challenge to the truth as it is coming towards us in our minds, it takes all that much longer time to bring us to the truth.

• The Lord says to the man in John 9: 35-36, after he was cast out,
  • "Thou, dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, And who is he, Lord, that I may believe on him".

• I think that is the attitude we need to take on, the Berean attitude.

S.W.R. Would reception of the truth amount to obedience to the truth?

S.McC. Yes, I think so. J.B.S. referred to the importance of being obedient to the truth as it comes towards you, and then confirming the matter from the Scriptures.

Now we come to Timothy, and should dwell on him for a moment. He is a remarkable expression of this thought of quality.

• Of course, while we have only read these first five verses of chapter 16, by extension as we think of Timothy in other parts we can see what a vessel of quality he was, and yet a young man.

L.C. Does the apostle Paul show his wisdom by the choice of Titus to go with him when conflict was in mind, and the choice of Timothy when it was a question of being an exponent of the truth?

S.McC. I think that is very important. You remember he says in 1 Corinthians 4: 17,

• "For this reason I have sent to you Timotheus, who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, who shall put you in mind of my ways as they are in Christ, according as I teach everywhere in every assembly".

It is a wonderful thing to have a young person who is an exponent of the truth, not only in speaking, but a living exponent of the truth and of Paul's ways as they are in Christ.
• Some of us may imitate the older ones, but Timothy was an exponent of Paul's ways as they are in Christ, not as in Adam, not according to the first man, but as in Christ, showing the elevated view Timothy had in regard of Paul.

O.L. Speaking of the value of sisters, it is remarkable that Timothy had his instruction from his mother and grandmother.

S.McC. I think that is good, and it is important to see how the sisters enter into the background of the development of this kind of quality.

• It is an important thing in the homes, where the brothers are away so much at work and business, that mothers should be true to the ministry and to the truth, true to the light as to Christ and the assembly in holding the children.

A.E.McC. Is it important that Timothy is introduced here as a disciple?

S.McC. I think it is, showing that he was in "the way". It says,

• "And he came to Derbe and Lystra: and behold"

  – notice that word –

  "behold, a certain disciple was there, by name Timotheus, son of a Jewish believing woman, but the father a Greek, who had a good testimony of the brethren in Lystra and Iconium".

• It is very interesting that Timothy is introduced with that word 'behold'. He was there, that is, he was in the locality, and then it says he had a good testimony of the brethren.

• That is a very important matter; he was a disciple, that is he was following up things in a disciplined way, and coming under the view and gaze of heaven, and he had a good testimony of the brethren.

• That is a word for all of us. It is one thing to go to another place and have a good testimony, but what about the gatherings we are in? What about the gatherings we are in in this island? Have we a good testimony of the brethren there? That is an important thing.

O.L. He says in 2 Timothy 1: 4-5,

• "that I may be filled with joy; calling to mind the unfeigned faith which has been in thee".

• So faith enters into the matter.

S.McC. It does. And how many young people are here this morning who have been brought up in relation to that line? Can it be said of every one of them, as Paul could say of Timothy,

• "calling to mind the unfeigned faith which has been in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and in thy mother Eunice, and I am persuaded that in thee also".

• Can it be said that the faith that was in their mothers and grandmothers is in them? Paul said, "I am persuaded", it is not a question of what he was told, but what was seen in those beloved sisters was continued in Timothy, and that is a great matter.

E.C.L. Would the word "him" in verse 3 be important?

• "Him would Paul have go forth with him".

S.McC. It would stress the matter of quality. "Him", that kind of person.

• I think it is good to say in passing, in a simple way, that it is important for the younger brethren, brothers and sisters, in view of the regimentation that may take place soon, to look into this matter of having a good report among the brethren.

• Many of the young brothers were called up in the last war, and some had never committed themselves, and some were not moving very well, and yet they went up and claimed exemption on the grounds of conscience. It is a difficult position.

• The brethren were called to testify in relation to them, and the young men and women do well to face this matter, and think a long way ahead, and a long way behind too, of what may come up in their lives.

• Having a good report among the brethren will be a great support and help in facing circumstances in their lives.

E.C.L. In regard of Samson it says,

• "The Spirit of Jehovah began to move him at Mahaneh-Dan", Judges 13: 25 – his own locality?

S.McC. I think so. He was a remarkable young man and was helped on the line of Nazariteship in connection with the testimony.

L.McF. Timothy is addressed as, "O man of God", 1 Timothy 6: 11. It seems to be the only time the expression is used in the New Testament.

S.McC. It is very remarkable, and his knowledge of the Scriptures is stressed, from a child he knew the Scriptures, showing the importance, dear brethren, of the reading of the Scriptures in our houses.

• Do we all have the reading of the Scriptures in the mornings? Or do we let our children go out as the children of the world go out? How are our children going out? Fortified against the subtle attempts of the enemy in the schools?

• Are they fortified through the knowledge of the Scriptures and the reading of the Scriptures in our households every morning? These things are simple things, but enter into the very life of the testimony in view of its continuance.

G.S.R. Is there something in the expression,

• "him would Paul have go forth with him"?

• I was thinking of the apparent influence and place that Timothy had at Derbe and Lystra, but would this be promotion on the principle of faithfulness, and now he has the great Pauline outlook of suffering and glory.

S.McC. I think that is it. "Him would Paul have go forth with him". A striking contrast to John Mark who went back in the previous chapter

• "Paul thought it not well to take with them him who had abandoned them".

  In chapter 13: 13 it says,

  "John separated from them and returned to Jerusalem".

• It would not look as if there was too much in that, but when you come to chapter 15: 38, it says, "him who had abandoned them". It is put in a very serious light, not just that he left them, or separated from them, but abandoned them; a very strong word.

H.D. Timothy cared with genuine feelings how the saints got on.

S.McC. And how much heaven thinks of these younger ones like Timothy who are praying about the brethren and caring for them. It is on that line that we get advanced in the things of God – like David, who had a secret history, and cared for the sheep in regard of the lion and the bear before he slew Goliath.

H.F. Not much is said about Timothy's father naturally, but would we not see that quality depended much on his spiritual father?

S.McC. And we might say that this was a distinct disadvantage to Timothy, and it is remarkable how much we will make of disadvantages, and say we have been hindered.

• But Timothy, despite the disadvantage as it might seem to be, is a disciple, and has a good testimony of the brethren and is going forward.

• It is interesting what is said in verse 4,
  • "and as they passed through the cities they instructed them to observe the decrees determined on by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem".

• That is a very fine tribute to the line Paul was moving on. He was promoting unity, for while they had fought out tremendous issues at the very source and origin of the issue, Jerusalem, he is instructing "them to observe the decrees determined on by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem".

S.W.R. Even the circumcision of Timothy was carried out by Paul.

S.McC. It shows the liberty Paul had and what a remarkable man he was.

• When he went up to Jerusalem with Titus, he does not circumcise Titus. He was going into the very realm in which these judaising teachers were entrenched, and he takes with him an uncircumcised person. What could they say? They could say nothing. There was evidence of the work of God in Titus, concrete evidence.

• There is no issue at stake here and he circumcises Timothy; it is a certain liberty the apostle assumes in the matter.

O.L. Moses was handed back to his mother to train him for the service before him.

S.McC. I think that should bring us to Lydia. God is stressing the place the sisters have, and it is well for them to fill their part in things. Lydia is a wonderful woman, it says of her in verse 14,

• "And a certain woman, by name Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God, heard; whose heart the Lord opened to attend to the things spoken by Paul".

• She worshipped God, a very interesting allusion that to a woman, a sister; you do not often get it in the Scriptures.

• It says of Hannah in 1 Samuel 2: 1, "Hannah prayed, and said". Eli marked her mouth in the first chapter and noticed that she did not speak, but in chapter 2 she says,
  • "my mouth is opened wide over mine enemies; for I rejoice in thy salvation. There is none holy as Jehovah, for there is none beside thee, neither is there any rock like our God".

• She ascribes greatness to God. But here it says of Lydia that she worshipped God. Where, and how? It is a remarkable tribute that, in regard of a sister.

Rem. Timothy's mother is brought forward before his father.

S.McC. It is to specially stress the maternal and sisterly side.

• Those who follow the Scriptures closely will notice in the book of Leviticus that the mother in different sections is put before the father.

• Even young people sometimes think they can get an advantage from their mothers and not from their fathers.

• But Leviticus would emphasise the mother first as reverence. There is need for reverence for the mother, she is not somebody we try to get around and do as we like with, but one who is to be feared.

It says in verse 13, "And on the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where it was the custom for prayer to be, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had assembled".

• Now notice this matter in this section of praying and worshipping.

• 1 Corinthians 11: 5 speaks of a woman praying and prophesying, showing we are to look into these matters, and see the place they have, and how they apply, and that there is room for the activity of sisters on this line. I think this lays the basis for the work at Philippi.

G.O. I was thinking of the mother of Moses, she hid the child when she saw he was a goodly child – she hid him. I was thinking of the activities of the sisters, and how she hid him from the world's influence.

S.McC. That is it, she hid him in the sedge, she did not put him out into the full current of the stream where it was going forward with unabated force, but she hides him in the sedge where the current is broken, and not so strong.

• That is why there is great concern about sending our children to universities. If they are established in their souls they may come through, but how many have been lost!

• Education is necessary, of course, but it is a great matter that we do not go beyond what is necessary lest we lose our young people.

E.W. Lydia traded in purple.

S.McC. I do not know that I can say much about that. She had to make a living; we might just be simple about the passage.

• We have had a good deal said about sisters not working, but we are not to take that to mean that no sister should work. That is not the way the truth is presented. If a sister has to work to maintain righteousness, she has to work.

• Lydia was what we might call a sales lady, she carried on her business and did it well apparently, because she had a house in which she could care for the apostle, and does. She wants them to come in and abide with her.
  • She says, "If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and abide there".

• She does not say, 'You have to come and stay with me', she is not arbitrary, but she says, "If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and abide there".

• Now here is a woman who had to go out to work and to sell to keep herself going. She was a practical woman, and we do not want the idea of super-spiritual women, but sisters who can translate the truth into practical results.

• Lydia was not a super-spiritual sister, but an ordinary everyday kind of woman who faced the practical affairs and amenities of life.

E.C.L. Even though she was a busy woman she could find time to think of, and attend to, the things spoken by Paul.

S.McC. It has often been said that if you want someone to do something for you, ask a busy person. If you ask an indolent person he may not do it at all, but a busy man or woman is a good person to ask to do something, for they will always find time to do it. It is a great matter to be marked by diligence.

A.E.McC. Lydia would stand out in contrast to the "certain female slave".

S.McC. She does, and the latter is another person who is apparently working for a living, but what a contrast she is, bringing gain to her masters. She is the channel for satanic energy to move through, and Paul is not sparing in his remarks in his epistles in regard of such.

J.R. Would Lydia worshipping God suggest that she had a knowledge of God in her soul?

S.McC. That is important. Worshipping would suggest that. Praying is one thing, but worshipping is another.

• It is stressing quality in Lydia, that she was not only asking for her needs, or for the needs of the testimony, but she has a sense in her soul of the greatness of God, and she is a worshipper of God.

L.C. The Lord Jesus speaks of worship to the woman in John 4. Does that indicate that this matter was going to concern her, and the women are going to be drawn into this matter of worshipping God?

S.McC. I am sure that is right, and it is remarkable that the very entrance of the truth into Europe should be linked on with a woman who worships God, and I think there is something in that for us today.

S.W.R. Do you think being outside the gate, and by the river would be two good positions?

S.McC. I think there is something in that. These women were not carrying on gossip or mere worldly conversation as to what was going on within the gates, or within the city, but they had the interests of God before them.

• They were pious women, and Lydia was a hospitable woman. We ought to thank God for the sisters in our localities in whose houses the brethren are ministered to. It is a wonderful thing to think of the houses in our cities where the brethren are cared for.

• There are houses definitely laid out for that and we should thank God for them. You will always find that they will be prospered, they will never be in want.

S.T. Is there something specific in "whose heart the Lord opened to attend to the things spoken by Paul"?

S.McC. I think so. It is the direct operation of the Lord. It shows what a remarkable woman Lydia was, and the Lord had a definite hand in the matter of her heart being opened, not her ear, but her heart, showing that quality is in mind in this sister, and that is what is coming to light now.

• There is a good deal we brothers have overlooked in the sisterhood. There is a good deal of quality there, and we need to have our eyes opened to see it.

L.McF. Peter speaks of the hidden man of the heart.

S.McC. Yes. "Whose adorning let it not be that outward one of tressing of hair, and wearing gold, or putting on apparel; but the hidden man of the heart, in the incorruptible ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which in the sight of God is of great price", 1 Peter 3: 3-4.

Now, our time has gone, but we might look at chapter 18 and see the quality in these persons, Apollos, Aquila and Priscilla. They were a remarkable trio.

• Apollos is a wonderful man, a man we may well take account of. He is mighty in the Scriptures, though he does not have the knowledge of the way of God accurately.

• It is important to see that Priscilla is linked on with Aquila in this matter, the oneness of this beloved brother and sister in their links together in the testimony is remarkable. They took him to them.

• It has often been noted the comely way it is done. They did not speak to him in front of everybody, but took him to them.