Gtcotr/ws102721
In about the year AD51, when the Apostle Paul was about 46 years old, he and his team of missionary evangelists arrived in the Europe for the first time. They visited the city of Philippi in Macedonia where they spent a few weeks sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with Jews and Gentiles alike and many were saved.
The continuing account of Paul’s first visit to Philippi as recorded in Acts 16, tells of some businessmen getting angry with Paul over one of their slave girls getting delivered from a spirit of divination which cost the businessmen their income. Paul and Silas were dragged into the town center before the magistrates who, in response to a gathering angry mob incited by the businessmen, stripped Paul and Silas naked, beat them severely with rods, chained them and threw them into prison, fastening their feet in stocks.
In the midnight hour, Paul and Silas lifted up their voices and prayed and sang praises to God. Scriptures note that the prisoners were listening. All of the sudden there was an earthquake sent by God and it shook all of the prison doors open and even the chains fell off of all the prisoners. The end result is that many believed, were saved and water baptized, including the Roman jailer and his whole household … the Philippian Church was birthed.
Paul and Silas were so mistreated by the leading politicians and citizens of Philippi that it became best for the new Believers in Christ that Paul and Silas leave the city of Philippi and head to the next city, Thessalonica. Throughout Paul’s journeys, all the way to the end of his life, he continued to pray for and keep in contact with those Believers in Jesus at Philippi.
The book of Acts records several times in which the political leadership of a city or region or nation made rash and unjust decisions based on the demands of angry crowds, mobs, and multitudes who had been either hired or incited to riot. I find nothing much has changed in that respect during the past 2000 years.
About 11 years later, AD61 or AD62, Paul found himself under arrest and in prison again. This time in Rome as a prisoner of the evil lunatic Emperor Nero. Once again Paul was arrested and unjustly judged guilty by the political leadership in Jerusalem due to the rioting demands of an angry mob who had been incited to falsely accuse Paul of crimes he did not commit. The mob even tried to kill Paul themselves. The city leadership was so afraid of the unruly crowd that they arrested Paul instead of those causing the riots or those doing the rioting. At any rate, Paul found himself incarcerated and awaiting trial. He stayed under arrest without being brought to trial for years. Aren’t you glad that can’t happen to you?
While Paul was in prison in Rome the Believers in the Church in Philippi continued to stay in contact with him and send him reports and financial support to help meet his ongoing ministry needs. The Philippian Church also sent a man named Epaphroditus from Philippi to Rome to help and to serve Paul. Epaphroditus brought some much-needed things to Paul as well as a good report of the strength and ministry of the Church in Philippi.
Reports must have passed back and forth between Paul and the Philippian congregation. We know this because at some point Epaphroditus became very sick and almost died. Although Epaphroditus recovered, one of his remaining concerns was that the congregation in Philippi had been so worried about him. Both Paul and Epaphroditus wanted them to know he was ok.
So, in the year AD62, Paul wrote a letter to the Church at Philippi from his prison house in Rome. Of course you know I am talking about the New Testament Epistle of Philippians, which Paul sent to the Church at Philippi by the hand of none other than Epaphroditus. Let’s read a few verses Paul wrote so that we might learn something tonight from this timeless, Holy Spirit inspired writing.
Epaphroditus is mentioned twice by Paul in the main body of this Epistle to the Philippian Church.
Philippians 2 NKJV
24 But I trust in the Lord
that I myself shall also come shortly.
25 Yet I considered it
necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow
soldier, but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need;
26 since he was longing for
you all, and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick.
27 For indeed he was sick
almost unto death; but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me
also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.
28 Therefore I sent him the
more eagerly, that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less
sorrowful.
29 Receive him therefore in
the Lord with all gladness, and hold such men in esteem;
30 because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life, to supply what was lacking in your service toward me.
We do not know and cannot discern from these writings the nature of the illness suffered by Epaphroditus, but we can clearly understand the heart and the service he performed to meet Paul’s needs in the furtherance of the Gospel on behalf of the congregation at Philippi, which he accomplished without regard to his physical well-being or the danger it presented. Epaphroditus was a man who saw the need, understood the benefit to God, and put his hand to the work without regard as to the personal cost it may in the end require of him.
The sickness came about no doubt from the extra service Epaphroditus gave on top of those things which he first brought to Paul from the Philippian Church, which are accounted for in:
Philippians 4 NKJV
16 For even in Thessalonica
you sent aid once and again for my necessities.
·
Paul remembered the faithfulness and support
of the Philippian
Believers above a decade earlier, just after he had been released from the
Philippian jail and left to preach the Gospel in Thessalonica.
·
There
is a fond memory of those who helped us to do the work of the Lord in times
past, just as though it was constantly before us.
17 Not that I seek the gift,
but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account.
18 Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.
Acceptable to God … To which Paul confidently and prophetically replies:
19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Which shall also be true for those who help to further the Gospel efforts of the men and women sent by God to labor in the fields for Jesus today.
Just for a moment and as we close, allow me to take us back to Paul’s description of this amazing man, Epaphroditus, in:
Philippians 2:25 Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need;
·
My
Brother
o
A Shared Sympathy
o Having the Same Heart
·
Fellow
Worker
o
A Shared Work
o Pulling Together
Alongside
·
Fellow
Soldier
o
A Shared Danger
o To Stand Beside in
Conflict
·
Your
Messenger
o Greek: Apostolos
o One sent with a
message or duty to represent
·
My
Minister
o A publicly recognized
servant
o Attending to needs
Epaphroditus
was an amazing man by choice and by pursuit. That’s the kind of testimony we
hope to have from those to whom God sends us.
