Philemon 1:2 And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: For as the lowly bush receives the dew of heaven, not to absorb it on itself, but to distil a portion on the yet lowlier plant that may grow at its root, so must "the Church in the house" learn "to do good and distribute," as a steward for Christ of that gospel which is committed to it in trust for others. Even the lordly mountain catches the first outpourings of the skies, not to treasure them up in its own bosom, but to send them down in limpid and refreshing streams along the valleys and meadows below. And so it is the mission of the Church of Christ at large to fulfil such offices of gospel mercy as shall make "the wilderness and solitary place be glad for them, and the desert rejoice and blossom as the rose," and to be the instrument of Christian enterprise and effort to the ends of the earth. (A. H. Drysdale, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house:WEB: to the beloved Apphia, to Archippus, our fellow soldier, and to the assembly in your house: |
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