“Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house.”
Now we come to more specific salutations of the epistle to the Colossians (Co 4:15-18).
“Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea”
Laodicea was located near Colosse. Paul sends salutations to them as well.
“and Nymphas [Nympha]“
It is possible to translate this sentence as “Nympha [feminine], and the church which is in her house.” Paul names Nympha as an outstanding Christian woman. She was remarkable because she held an upstanding reputation. She is the only woman mentioned in this chapter. Nymphas opened her home to hold a church there. No church can operate efficiently for very long without women.
“and the church that is in his [her] house“
In the first century, Christians worshiped in houses (Jn 20:19; cf. Acts 28:23,30). Meeting in homes was the common practice of the early church (Acts 12:12; 16:40; Rom 16:5; 1 Cor. 16:19; Philemon 2). The church met in homes, while heathens met in temples. Church buildings came later. There was no church edifice before the third century. Christians met in homes for the first 250 years of the church’s existence. Some churches met in gravel pits, caves, fields, or forests. The church at Laodicea met in Nympha’s place.
Principle:
All God expects of us is to do what we can with what we have.
Application:
Nympha may not have been able to preach, sing, or play, but she could open her house to be used by God. She did what she could with what she had. This is all God expects of us.
