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Our Favorite Couple · Enjoying the Journey

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  In our busy world, family time is frequently neglected.
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  It is vital that we give attention to our families while we can,
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  and it is especially important to give attention to what God
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  says in his word about our homes. For the next few
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  moments, let's join Scott Pauley as we open the scriptures and and
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  find God's message for your family.
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  Several years ago, my wife and I had the privilege of teaching a
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  married couples Sunday school class every Lord's Day.
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  And what a great time we had with those couples over a
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  period of, I don't know, 2 or 3 years, I guess. And at
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  one juncture in our time together, we decided that every Sunday
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  we were going to highlight or spotlight a
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  different Bible couple. And so I challenged our class, I said, let's try
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  to discover as many couples, married couples,
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  given in the scriptures we possibly can, and something we can learn from each of
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  them. Well, that was fascinating because there are many that stand out.
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  Of course, Adam and Eve and Abraham and Sarah But there are some
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  that are lesser-known couples of the Bible, and yet what a profound
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  impact they had, or an illustration of some truth. For example,
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  in the Old Testament you have Hosea and Gomer,
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  and what a picture of divine love, of forgiveness and restoration.
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  And so that's just an example, but scripture's full of them,
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  and, uh, some positive examples, some negative examples, but all
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  of them given to us for some reason. Well, in that study,
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  Tammy and I identified one couple that really became
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  our favorite couple, and a couple we enjoyed reading about,
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  studying about, talking about, and sharing with others. And I'd like
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  to introduce you today to our favorite couple. Could I do that? I've had a
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  lot of great couples in my lifetime who've impacted us,
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  people who have deeply, deeply encouraged
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  us and instructed us, and the folks that we've admired friends we've
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  enjoyed introducing to others, but I can't think of a couple I'd rather introduce
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  you to today than this couple. We are first introduced to them in the book
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  of Acts, in Acts chapter number 18, and here's their story.
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  After these things, Paul departed from Athens and came to Corinth and
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  found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus,
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  lately come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because that Claudius
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  had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome, and came unto them.
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  And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them and wrought,
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  for by their occupation they were tentmakers.
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  So here we have their names. This is the first mention of this
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  couple in the Bible. The husband's name is Aquila and his
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  wife's name is Priscilla. I think they are one
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  of the most neglected couples of the New Testament, and I say
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  that because we find them repeatedly throughout the New Testament.
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  We're introduced to them here in Acts chapter 18, but they show up in Romans
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  chapter 16, verse 3. They show up in 1 Corinthians 16:19.
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  They show up in 2 Timothy chapter 4, verse 19, at the end
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  of Paul's ministry. This is one of our favorite couples because this
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  is a couple, I believe, that is a testimony of real
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  faithfulness to one another, faithfulness to God, and faithfulness
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  to the work of God. Could I point out what town they lived
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  in? They lived in Corinth. Do you remember anything about Corinth?
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  Corinth, of course, was known as a carnal place.
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  It was known as a city full of debauchery and wickedness,
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  immorality. And this is striking to me when
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  we're introduced to this couple in Acts chapter 18. They're not
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  only of the same craft— they're tentmakers— but they're also of the same
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  faith. Because when you read on in Acts chapter number 18,
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  you discover that Aquila and Priscilla were true believers. So don't
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  miss the most obvious thing: it is possible to have a Christian home in
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  a wicked place. They had a Christian home in Corinth. And I
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  don't know where you're living today, but I do know the generation we're living in,
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  trying to raise kids in. And someone says it's impossible, it's so
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  wicked. Oh no, my friend, in the most wicked places It
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  is possible to be a Christian, to follow Christ, and to
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  have a truly Christian home. I would also point out that
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  Aquila and Priscilla were one of the keys in the early church.
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  You're going to find in our study of this couple that they were a
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  tremendous support. They were co-laborers. They were helpers.
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  These were not pastoral people.
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  This was not an apostle. This was not someone even known as
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  a deacon that we know of in the church. And yet, without couples
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  like Aquila and Priscilla, Paul could never have accomplished what he accomplished
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  in so many of these places. I am convinced and convicted
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  that strong churches are made up of strong families.
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  And if our churches are going to stay strong and the work of God is
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  going to go forward in difficult days,
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  we have to work on our homes. We have to say,
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  you know, I may not be the pastor, but I can help the pastor.
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  And I may not be the most visible person, but I can do something for
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  the Lord and for his glory. Aquila and Priscilla are not famous,
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  but they made a difference. I believe they're famous in heaven. In fact,
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  I'm convinced that many of the anonymous souls here on earth are going to be
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  the ones at the judgment seat of Christ that are most greatly rewarded.
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  We love to talk about the Apostle Paul, but behind the Apostle
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  Paul, there was this couple known as Aquila and Priscilla that Paul's
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  going to testify made a tremendous difference in his life and in his ministry.
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  I want to, to encourage you, dear listener, that whoever you are
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  and wherever you are today, you can make a difference
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  right where you are. You see, Aquila and Priscilla lived
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  in one of the most wicked cities in the Roman Empire. They lived
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  there at a time of great difficulty as well, I might add.
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  For example, did you notice the, the parenthesis in Acts 18,
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  verse 2? How did they get to Corinth?
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  It says that Claudius had commanded all Jews to
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  depart from Rome. Now we read that and go right on. We think that's just
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  information. Oh no. Do you know that this was a reference
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  to the persecution of Jews going on at that particular juncture?
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  Do you realize that Aquila and Priscilla were themselves
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  enduring an uprooting. They'd been displaced,
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  they'd been moved not of their own volition but because
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  of circumstances. And maybe your family has been uprooted,
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  maybe something in your home— not geographically, but something has changed,
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  and it's not something you would have chosen for yourself. It's certainly not something that
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  you would have picked. And oh, how easy it is to grumble
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  and complain and see the worst in it. But have you seen God in it?
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  You see, they would never have met the Apostle Paul if they had
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  not been moved. They would never have crossed paths with the great apostle and
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  gotten connected to what was going on in this missionary journey if
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  it was not for the divine providence of God in these circumstances. You have to
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  see the Lord even in your difficulty. Even when all the Jews are being kicked
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  out of Rome, God is ruling the good and overruling the evil.
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  The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, and he turneth it whithersoever
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  he will. And we know that all things work together
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  for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to
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  his purpose. And so I introduce you to my
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  favorite family, our favorite married couple, Aquila and
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  Priscilla. I'd like you to do something before we continue our study.
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  I'd like for you to read through Acts chapter 18. Read through
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  Acts chapter 18 and then look up the other references to Aquila
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  and Priscilla throughout the New Testament. Romans 16:3,
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  1 Corinthians 16:19, 2 Timothy 4:19. And when
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  we return to our study, I want to give you some very practical
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  things that this, this couple did to make a difference
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  right where they were. There are things all of us can do right where we
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  are, things that we can apply. Isn't it interesting that of all the
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  married couples in the Bible, this married couple is mentioned
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  in 4 different New Testament books under
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  inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It seems like this is one of God's emphasis
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  to us, and I want us to learn all we possibly can from their example.
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  Our Heavenly Father, I thank you for every person that you put in
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  scripture and every person that you put into our lives. I thank
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  you for every truth you're seeking to teach us at this moment, and I pray
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  now for every couple and every family listening to me, whatever their difficulty,
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  wherever they're living, and whatever's facing them. Pray you'll help them to
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  be strong in the Lord and the power of his might today.
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  Help us to learn all we can and then help us to live what
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  we're learning. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  For more resources for your marriage and family,
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  visit us at etj.bible and click
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  on the Take the Next Step link where you'll find many Bible
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  resources that will strengthen your marriage and equip
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  you to raise your children in the ways of the Lord.
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  We highly recommend Scott's book, New Testament Marriage.
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  In it, you'll discover timeless biblical principles from the
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  husband and wife team Aquila and Priscilla, and these principles
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  are very applicable to your marriage today.
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  From all of us at Enjoying the Journey, thanks for listening
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  today, and until next time, We pray that
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  you will enjoy the journey.