Paul speaking: “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea; that you receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and that you help her in whatever matter she may have need of you; for she herself has also been a helper of many, and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who for my life risked their own necks, to whom not only do I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles; also greet the church that is in their house.” (Romans 16:1-5 NASB1995)

The apostle Paul did not treat women with dishonor and disrespect just because they were women, and not men. He honored and he valued multiple women of the faith who served God faithfully in ministry. There were several women who he regarded as fellow workers with him, in Christ Jesus, who were also his helpers in ministry. One of them was Phoebe, and another was Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila, both of them servants of Christ.

We don’t know exactly what roles these two women had in Christian ministry, and in serving the church, and as helpers of Paul and others, and as Paul’s fellow workers in Christ Jesus. But it would appear that their roles extended beyond just ministering to women and to children. And both Priscilla and Aquila took Apollos aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:26). So women were not being shushed entirely.

Sadly, we live in a day and time when so many men have gone the way of the flesh, and have become addicted to sexual perversion, idolatry, and adultery via Smartphones and easy and private access to the internet and to all sorts of moral filth at their fingertips. And the last I checked, statistics were pretty high for the number of “Christian” men, including a good number of pastors, who regularly and habitually view pornographic images.

The number of men within the gatherings of “the church” who meet the biblical and moral qualifications of pastor, elder, overseer, and deacon, seems to be dwindling. So, many pastors are often chosen on the basis of scholastic achievements and personality and charisma, while elders and deacons seem to often be chosen on the basis of popularity or wealth or charm, rather than on the basis of the biblical and moral qualifications to fit those positions.

And, yes, I am a woman. And no, I am not a man hater, and my purpose here is not to put men down or to lift women up to positions of superiority over men. And I am definitely not trying to paint all women as “pure as the driven snow” or all men as crazed addicts of sexual perversion. My purpose here is to address a real and serious issue going on within the church and in the lives of many who profess to be Christ followers, and the impact that has on the church and the ministry and leadership within the church gatherings.

I have sat under the ministry of a good number of pastors of “churches” over my nearly 76 years of life. For we moved often, from state to state, and from city to city. And I have listened to many of them on the internet, as well. And I have read some of their publications (books). And I have listened to some of them talk about the others of them, and then refute some of the lies coming forth from many of their lips, according to their performances.

And it appears that the majority of them have gone the way of the flesh, and the way of the world, and the way of going soft on sin and allowing sin to reign supreme within the gatherings of what are being called “churches.” So many of them have altered the gospel to make it less offensive to the people of the world who they are trying to draw to their gatherings. So, they have removed God’s requirements for death to sin and obedience to his word.

For so many of them have partnered with the ungodly, and with the world, and with the government in these unholy unions which God forbids. And they have turned their gatherings into places of business to be marketed to the world. And so many of them are not teaching the biblical gospel, and they are not living it themselves, for they give themselves and their congregants permission to keep walking in sin and not in obedience to God.

And so we have a lot of men called “pastors” who are not teaching the gospel of Christ according to the Scriptures, and who do not themselves fit the biblical qualifications for their ministry positions. And so if God is now raising up some women who are not compromising with sin, and who are obeying God, in practice, to speak the truth of the gospel to the people, it is because God cares more about getting his gospel message out to the people than he cares about whether his messengers are male or female.

So, if we have a shortage of biblically qualified men to teach the people the truth of the gospel, and to lead the people, because they are living in sin, and/or because they are teaching the lies which tickle itching ears, then let the godly women among you share with you the truth of what God’s word teaches, not just to the women and children, but to your congregations. Why? Because you need the truth being taught and the lies being refuted by whoever are God’s servants and messengers, whether male or female.

For Jesus Christ taught that to come to him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, in his power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).

(Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22)

Should I Not Preach Jesus

Based off 1 Corinthians 9:16-10:13
An Original Work / July 4, 2013
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Woe to me should I not preach Jesus.
I’m compelled to preach the full gospel.
I make myself a slave to ev’ryone
To win their hearts to Christ.
All this I do for my Lord Jesus,
And for the sake of His Name;
Do it for the sake of His gospel,
So that I, its blessings gain.

Scripture notates the sins of others;
Written down for us as examples
To keep us from setting our hearts
On evil as did those of old.
Do not worship other gods of man;
Do not give your hearts to them;
Not partake in immorality.
Do not test your Lord and King.

So, be careful if you think you are
Standing firm in your faith in Jesus.
God has given his word to warn us,
So through faith we will not fall.
No temptation has o’ertaken you
Except what is commonplace.
God is faithful to not let you be
Tempted past what you can bear.
He gives the way of escape.

A Helper of Many
An Original Work / December 27, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love