left them when the course was set for Pamphylia (Acts 13:5,13; 15:38).  It is

extremely difficult to find those engaged in Christian service who are

willing to occupy this lowly place of 'under -rower'.  Yet unless one is

recognized as director and leader and another as subordinate and

a helper, how can the work go forward?  When we remember that Paul himself so

gladly took this lowly place, both at his commission (Acts 26:16) as we have

seen, and in his own voluntary submission, 'These hands have ministered unto

my necessities, and to them that were with me' (Acts 20:34), we cannot but

feel it a privilege to be entrusted with the same 'under -rower's' place.  It

was the glory of the Son of God that He was like a man 'under authority'

(Luke 7:8), and the servant is not greater than his Lord.  We bless the Lord

for the ministry of humble hands and hearts, known by few on earth but

treasured in heaven.  Surely the believer whose doctrine includes the words,

'Not I, but Christ', can be given no office however lowly, that cannot be

accepted gratefully as a means of glorifying the Lord and of following in His

From the variety of figures that we have already considered, ranging

from 'builders' and 'fishers' to 'angels' and 'husbandmen', it will be seen

that our idea of ministry must be exceedingly broad if it is to include all

that the Lord intends by the term.  The miracles of healing which our Lord

and His apostles performed, set forth very vividly the spiritual needs of

mankind; and we should be surprised if Christian ministry did not include

some aspect of that service which, even among the ungodly, is held in high

esteem, the service rendered by the nurse.  Today the nurse, whether public

or private, is a highly trained, skilful person, a picture of efficiency,

cleanliness and courage.  It was not always so.  We have but to think of

Florence Nightingale in real life, or of Sarah Gamp in the world

of fiction, to realize what a new meaning has become attached to the idea of

Among the many roles that the apostle fulfilled in his ministry to the

saints, therefore, we are not surprised to find that he claimed that of the

nurse.  Writing to the Thessalonians he says: 'We were gentle among you, even

as a nurse cherisheth her children' (1 Thess. 2:7).  It is a sad thing to

realize that this statement of Paul is a part of his defence against a

grievous misrepresentation.  He was obliged to refute charges of deceit,

uncleanness and guile, and of using flattering words, and a cloak of

covetousness (1 Thessalonians 2:3 -5).  If such as Paul could not escape

calumny, who are we (who often, alas, merit the hard things said of us), if

sometimes we are called upon to walk the same path?

The apostle here makes a greater claim than at first appears in the

Authorized Version.  For he actually says that he cherished them as a nurse

cherisheth her own children.  Further on, he changes the figure and says:

'Ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as

a father doth his (own) children' (1 Thess. 2:11).

The words 'his own' are the same in both verses.  The nurse, therefore,

is to be understood as a nursing -mother; and this is much more in line with

Biblical usage than is our modern conception of a nurse.  We read in Isaiah

49:23 of kings as nursing -fathers, and queens as nursing -mothers, in the

day of Israel's glory.  Naomi, in Ruth 4:16 and the mother of Moses in Exodus

2:7,9 are nurses of this type.  And Moses in Numbers 11 exclaims: