CHAPTER 7 Defining Evangelizing - Evangelism Unlimited

356 Evangelizology
Of the shining on the face of Stephen, just prior to his bearing witness of the Gospel to the
antagonistic audience:
Acts 6:15, “And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Council saw his face like the
face of an angel”
Of the giving of the Law by angels/messengers:
Act 7:53, “you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it” (cf. Gal 3:19
seems to favor the use of the word “angel” in Acts 7:53)
Of Paul:
Gal 4:14, “and that which was a trial to you in my bodily condition you did not despise or loathe,
but you received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus Himself”
In the Gospel, commissioning, and proclamation of Paul:
1 Tim 3:16, “And by common confession great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed
in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Beheld by angels, Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory”
One must confess, that from the standpoint of the Great Commission and the proclamation of
the Gospel, as obeyed by messengers of the same, the translation “messengers” seems to
be more appropriate in this context.
Of Rahab entertaining messengers-angels (or “spies,” in Joshua 2):
James 2:25, “And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works, when she
received the messengers and sent them out by another way?”
Of the angels/messengers/pastors of the Seven Churches in Revelation:
Rev 2:1, “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His
right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this”
cf. Rev 2:8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14
Yet, of a clear distinction between angels and the seed of Abraham:
Heb 2:16, “For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of
Abraham”
7) sunergo,j (13 NT uses, listed as an adjective), meaning fellow worker, helper:
1 Thess 3:2 (NKJ [following the Greek BYZ]), “and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God,
and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ [kai. sunergo.n h`mw/n evn tw/| euvaggeli,w| tou/
cristou/,], to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith”
8) su,ndouloj (10 NT uses), meaning fellow servant:
Col 1:7, “just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful
servant of Christ on our behalf”
9) sustratiw,thj (2 NT uses), meaning fellow soldier: 487
Phil 2:25, “But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and
fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need”
Phm 1:2, “and to Apphia our sister, and to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your
house”
10) u`phre,thj: Acts 26:16, “to appoint you a minister and a witness”
11) a`lieu,j, fisherman:
Matt 4:19, “I will make you fishers of men”
Mark 1:17, “I will make you become fishers of men”
487 Notice the Louw-Nida’s seeming attempt to remove the warfare imagery of Paul in this term: “34.19
συστρατιώτης, ου m: (a figurative extension of meaning of συστρατιώτης ‘fellow soldier,’ not occurring in the NT) one
who serves in arduous tasks or undergoes severe experiences together with someone else – ‘one who struggles along
with, one who works arduously along with, fellow struggler.’ Ἀπφίᾳ τῇ ἀδελφῇ καὶ Ἀρχίππῳ τῷ συστρατιώτῃ ἡμῶν ‘to
our sister Apphia and our fellow soldier Archippus’ Phm 2 [sic]. A strictly literal translation of συστρατιώτης in Phm 2
might imply that Paul himself was a soldier and therefore, in a sense, a secret agent of some military force. Accordingly,
it may be necessary to employ a simile, for example, ‘who works like a fellow soldier’ or ‘one who experiences great
hardships along with us’” (Louw-Nida Lexicon; from Bibleworks 8.0).