“Coming together is a beginning; staying together is development, and working together is a success.” – Henry Ford, American industrialist and founder of Ford Motor Company
“None of us is as smart as all of us.”- Ken Blanchard, motivational speaker and author of The One Minute Manager
“We’re all working together; that’s the secret.” – Sam Walton, founder of Wal*Mart
“Working together always works together better…” – Chris Pine, actor (Star Trek reboot, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves)
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”- Helen Keller, author/disability rights advocate
“The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team.” – John Wooden, UCLA Men's Basketball head coach (1948-1975)
"Let's Work Together" was originally written as the song "Let's Stick Together" by Wilbert Harrison ("Kansas City" #1 1959 pop charts). After being released as a single, "Let's Stick Together" had relative success but never made it to the charts. Harrison then took the music to the song and reimagined the lyrical content. In 1962, he released it as "Let's Work Together" and it generated significant interest. But it wasn't until Sue Records, the label that owned the rights to the single, released their 1969 recording of the song that it went as far as #32 on the Billboard Hot 100.
At about that same time, Alan Wilson and Bob Hite fronted the blues-rock band, Canned Heat ("Going Up The Country", #11 Billboard Hot 100), and recorded their own version of the song. "Let's Work Together" marked a different sound for Canned Heat as Bob Hite took over lead vocals for the song from usual frontman Alan Wilson. The band delayed the single release in the US to stay away from the Harrison version. Due to Harrison's version failing to gain traction in the United Kingdom however, Canned Heat released their "Let's Work Together" to great success, soaring all the way to #2 in the UK Singles Chart. Canned Heat would release a domestic single of the song in 1970 surpassing the Harrison predecessor by peaking at #26.
Despite its bluesy-rock music foundation, "Let's Work Together" soars into a positive, feel-good, lyrical content reflecting the peace and love movement that defined much of the late 60s and early 70s. Its encouragement for folks to have a unity of purpose to accomplish great things is buoyed by its pronouncements of making people happy and causing them to smile.
Perhaps you've experienced similar phenomena. You partner with one, two, or more people to succeed at a goal that you set as a team. You all work diligently to achieve your part of the plan and in the end, the outcome is beneficial to all who were involved. The result should be that happy feeling of a job well done manifested in the smiles of your cohorts.
However, that sense of accomplishment isn't a new experience that is unique to you and your team and sometimes it doesn't cause smiles to erupt...
Throughout the pages of the Bible, there is much said about folks working together to achieve tasks. As we have been chronologically traveling through its pages we have come to the point where we see in the life of Paul, a preference to always have someone, sometimes a group of folks, with him as he goes about his missionary journeys telling others about Jesus. He uses these times as moments of mentoring as well as a partnership to see the Gospel spread broadly. Much is accomplished for the kingdom and in the relationships Paul develops as he has time with each of these individuals.
Today we see a similar circumstance in Paul's interaction with Aquilla and his wife, Priscilla. Aquila and Priscilla were in Corinth, where Paul had traveled after he left Athens. They found themselves in Corinth due to the persecution by Claudius of Jews who were living in Italy, especially Rome, their original home.
While in Corinth, Aquilla and Priscilla naturally bonded with Paul over their commonalities in work life. Paul was a tentmaker by trade and at times utilized his vocational skills to spread the Gospel as well as earn resources. Paul also continued his practice of frequenting the synagogue where he visited and shared with Jews and Greeks.
Paul's other cohorts, Silas and Timothy, arrive in Corinth after having been in Macedonia, to find Paul steeped in preaching and teaching about Jesus. As has happened everywhere Paul has traveled (and indeed in our own time), some folks received the Gospel, others rejected it, and still others got very upset at Paul's teaching and preaching. This ignited Paul's determination to no longer speak the message of Jesus to the Jews but to go exclusively to the Gentiles with his message of hope and redemption. Paul's partnership in the region did reap rewards as the ruler of the synagogue, Crispus believed along with his household. While the belief of Crispus and others encouraged Paul, it would take an intervention and assurance of God's partnership from the Lord to soften Paul's heart towards the Jews of Corinth. In a vision, the Lord comforted Paul with the knowledge that He was with him. And to persevere in seeing those who would believe, Jews and Gentiles, come to saving faith in Jesus. The vision Paul received from the Lord was so powerful he stayed in Corinth for a year and a half teaching the community about Jesus.
Towards the end of Paul's stay in Corinth, the persecution ramped up when the Jews brought Paul up on charges before a tribunal and the proconsul of Achaia, Gallio. Before Paul could even open his mouth to defend himself, Gallio shut the crowd down with dismissal and kicked them out of the tribunal. The Jews were so upset at his brush-off that they took Sosthenes, a different synagogue ruler, and began beating him in front of the governor. This had no effect on Gallio, but one would imagine it had a significant effect on Sosthenes!
Paul had developed such a relationship with Aquila and Priscilla that he took them on the remainder of his second missionary journey. They came to Ephesus where they stayed long enough for Paul to once again engage the Jews in the synagogue. The Bible says that Paul left the husband/wife tandem at Ephesus even though they had implored him to stay a while longer. Paul promised to return upon God's good favor and left them when he sailed to Cesarea and traveled on to Antioch thus effectively ending his second missionary journey.
Did you catch all of the partnerships in today's passage? There were even some passages that eluded to team-ups that were against Paul and his team. We see however, those efforts were ultimately thwarted because Paul and his partners were unified in their mission and goals. With God as the leader of the effort and their agreement with His mission, success was irrevocable.
I hope that you have friends. More importantly, I hope you have folks who travel through your life with you and have your back at every instance. I hope these friends are God-fearing, Jesus-loving, Spirit-bearers who do not hesitate to bind you to themselves as you go through life together working towards the goal of seeing God glorified, Jesus magnified, and the Holy Spirit personified in you. If you believe that Jesus has saved your life and restored your relationship with God and lives in you through the Holy Spirit, AND if you aren't currently attending a church in your area, please make finding a church home a priority. If I can help, email me at rawacr@gmail.com Let's work together to make much of Jesus!!!
Please don't try to do this life on your own. We were created for relationship. Ultimately your most important relationship should be with God through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. But the Bible also says that we need other folks. (not in the same way, but we do need'em!) The wisest man to ever live, King Solomon wrote: "Two are better than one..." Ecclesiastes 4:9 NASB/AMP/ESV/KJV, and "As iron sharpens iron..." Proverbs 27:17 NASB/AMP/ESV/KJV
Or as Mr. Wilbert Harrison and Canned Heat put it...
"Together we stand, divided we fall
Come on now people, let's get on the ball and work together
Come on, come on let's work together, now, now people
Because together we will stand, every boy, every girl, and a man,,,"
Come on now people, let's get on the ball and work together
Come on, come on let's work together, now, now people
Because together we will stand, every boy, every girl, and a man,,,"
'Til Tuesday
Loving HIM by Loving You,
randy
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