FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Scripture Reference: Philippians 2:19-30

Epaphroditus – Continued

Please read Philippians 2:25-30 for background to this section.

From last lesson: Epaphroditus was a balanced Christian! Balance is important in the Christian life. Some people emphasize “fellowship” so much that they forget the furtherance of the Gospel. Others are so involved in defending the “faith of the Gospel” that they neglect building fellowship with other believers.

He was a burdened Christian (verses 26–27, 30). Like Timothy, Epaphroditus was concerned about others. To begin with, he was concerned about Paul. When he heard in Philippi that Paul was a prisoner in Rome, he volunteered to make that long, dangerous trip to Rome to stand at Paul’s side and assist him. He carried the church’s love gift with him, protecting it with his own life.

Our churches today need men and women who are burdened for missions and for those in difficult places of Christian service. “The problem in our churches,” stated one missionary leader, “is that we have too many spectators and not enough participants.” Epaphroditus was not content simply to contribute to the offering. He gave himself to help carry the offering!

But this man was also burdened for his own home church. After arriving in Rome, he became very ill. In fact, he almost died. This delayed his return to Philippi, and the people there became concerned about him. But Epaphroditus was not burdened about himself; he was burdened over the people in Philippi because they were worried about him! This man lived in Philippians 1:21, not Philippians 2:21. Like Timothy, he had a natural concern for others. The word “distressed” used in Philippians 2:26, actually is more descriptive and better translated in the KJV which says, “full of heaviness” and it’s the same description used of Christ in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:37). Like Christ, Epaphroditus knew the meaning of sacrifice and service (Philippians 2:30), which are two of the marks of the submissive mind.

He was a blessed Christian (verses 28–30). What a tragedy it would be to go through life and not be a blessing to anyone! Epaphroditus was a blessing to Paul. He stood with him in his prison experience and did not permit even his own sickness to hinder his service. What times he and Paul must have had together! But he was also a blessing to his own church. Paul admonishes the church to honor him because of his sacrifice and service. (Christ gets the glory, but there is nothing wrong with the servant receiving some honor. Read 1 Thessalonians 5:12–13). There is no contradiction between Philippians 2:7 (“made Himself of no reputation”) and Philippians 2:29 (“hold such men in esteem”). The one deals with how you perceive yourself and the other is from others. Christ “emptied Himself” in His gracious act of humiliation, and God exalted Him. Epaphroditus sacrificed himself with no thought of reward, and Paul encouraged the church to hold him in honor to the glory of God.

He was a blessing to Paul and to his own church, and he is also a blessing to us today! He proves to us that the joyful life is the life of sacrifice and service, and that the submissive mind really does work. He and Timothy together encourage us to submit ourselves to the Lord, and to one another, in the Spirit of Christ. Christ is the Pattern we follow. Paul shows us the power (Philippians 4:12–19); and Timothy and Epaphroditus are the proof that this surrendered and submissive mind (to the will of Christ) really does work.

Will you permit the Spirit to reproduce “the mind of Christ” in you?

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary Volume 2.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Philippians 2:19-30

Timothy – Continued

Please read Philippians 2:19-24 for background to this section.

Paul did not make the mistake of moving too fast with Timothy. He gave him time to get his roots down, and then he enlisted the young man to work with him on his missionary tours. He taught Timothy the Word and permitted him to watch the apostle in his ministry (2 Timothy 3:10–17). This was the way Jesus trained His disciples. He gave personal instruction balanced by on-the-job experience. Experience without teaching can lead to discouragement, and teaching without experience can lead to spiritual deadness. It takes both instruction and experience.

He had a servant’s reward (verses 23–24). Timothy knew the meaning of “sacrifice and service” (Philippians 2:17), but God rewarded him for his faithfulness. To begin with, Timothy had the joy of helping others. To be sure, there were hardships and difficulties, but there were also victories and blessings. Because Timothy was a “good and faithful servant,” faithful over a few things, God rewarded him with “many things,” and he entered into the joy of the submissive mind (Matthew 25:21). He had the joy of serving with the great Apostle Paul and assisting him in some of his most difficult assignments (1 Corinthians 4:17); Timothy is mentioned at least twenty-four times in Paul’s letters.

But perhaps the greatest reward God gave to Timothy was to choose him to be Paul’s replacement when the great apostle was called home (see 2 Timothy 4:1–11). Paul himself wanted to go to Philippi, but had to send Timothy in his place. But, what an honor! Timothy was not only Paul’s “beloved son,” and Paul’s servant, but he became Paul’s substitute! His name is held in high regard by Christians today, something that young Timothy never dreamed of when he was busy serving Christ.

The submissive mind is not the product of an hour’s sermon, or a week’s seminar, or even a year’s service. The submissive mind grows in us as, like Timothy, we yield to the Lord and seek to serve others.

Epaphroditus

Please read Philippians 2:25-30 for background to this section.

Paul was a “Hebrew of the Hebrews”; Timothy was part Jew and part Gentile (Acts 16:1); and Epaphroditus was a full Gentile as far as we know. He was the member of the Philippian church who risked his health and life to carry their missionary offering to the apostle in Rome (Philippians 4:18). His name means “charming” and a charming Christian he is!

He was a balanced Christian (verse 25). Paul could not say enough about this man; “My brother, fellow worker, and fellow-soldier.” These three descriptions parallel what Paul wrote about the Gospel in the first chapter of this letter:

“my brother”— “the “fellowship in the Gospel” (Philippians 1:5)
“my fellow worker”— “the furtherance of the Gospel” (Philippians 1:12)
“my fellow soldier”— “the faith of the Gospel” (Philippians 1:27)

Epaphroditus was a balanced Christian!

Balance is important in the Christian life. Some people emphasize “fellowship” so much that they forget the furtherance of the Gospel. Others are so involved in defending the “faith of the Gospel” that they neglect building fellowship with other believers. Epaphroditus did not fall into either of these traps. He was like Nehemiah, the man who rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem with his sword in one hand and his trowel in the other (Nehemiah 4:17). You cannot build with a sword nor battle with a trowel! It takes both to get the Lord’s work accomplished.

Dr. Henry (Harry) A. Ironside used to tell about a group of believers who thought only of “fellowship.” They had little concern for reaching the lost or for defending the faith against its enemies. In front of their meeting place they hung a sign: JESUS ONLY. But the wind blew away some of the pasted letters, and the sign ended up reading – US ONLY. It was a perfect description of a group of people who were not balanced Christians.

To Be Continued

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary Volume 2.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Philippians 2:19-30

Timothy – Continued

Please read Philippians 2:19-24 for background to this section.

Notice the characteristics of this young man:

He had a servant’s mind (verses 19–21). To begin with, Timothy naturally cared for people and was concerned about their needs. He was not interested in “winning friends and influencing people;” he was genuinely interested in their physical and spiritual welfare. Paul was concerned about the church at Philippi and wanted to send someone to convey his concern and get the facts. There were certainly hundreds of Christians in Rome (Paul greets twenty-six of them by name in Romans 16); yet not one of them was available to make the trip! “All seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:21). In a very real sense, all of us live either in Philippians 1:21 or Philippians 2:21!

But Timothy had a natural concern for the welfare of others; he had a servant’s mind. It is too bad that the believers in Rome were so engrossed in themselves and their own internal wranglings (Philippians 1:15–16) that they had no time for the important work of the Lord. This is one of the tragedies of church problems; they divert time, energy, and concern away from the things that matter most. Timothy was not interested in promoting any party or supporting any divisive cause. He was interested only in the spiritual condition of God’s people, and this concern was natural to him. How did this concern develop? The answer is in the next characteristic of this remarkable young man.

He had a servant’s training (verse 22). Paul did not add Timothy to his “team” the very day the boy was saved. Paul was too wise to make an error like that. He left him behind to become a part of the church fellowship in Derbe and Lystra, and it was in that fellowship that Timothy grew in spiritual matters and learned how to serve the Lord. When Paul returned to that area a few years later, he was happy to discover that young Timothy “was well spoken of by the brethren” (Acts 16:2). Years later, Paul would write to Timothy about the importance of permitting new converts to grow before thrusting them into important places of ministry (1 Timothy 3:6–7).

The story is told of a popular local nightclub performer who visited a pastor and announced that he had been saved and wanted to serve the Lord. “What should I do next?” he asked.

“Well, I’d suggest you unite with a good church and start growing,” the pastor replied. “Is your wife a Christian?”

“No, she isn’t,” the musician replied. “I hope to win her. But, do I have to wait? I mean, I’d like to do something for God right now.”

“No, you don’t have to wait to witness for the Lord,” explained the pastor. “Get busy in a church, and use your talents for Christ.”

“But you don’t know who I am!” the man protested. “I’m a big performer, everybody knows me. I want to start my own organization, make records, and appear before big crowds!”

“If you go too far too fast,” warned the pastor, “you may hurt yourself and your testimony. And the place to start winning people is right at home. God will open up places of service for you as He sees you are ready. Meanwhile, study the Bible and give yourself a chance to grow.”

The man didn’t take the pastor’s counsel. Instead, he set up a big organization and started out on his own. His “success” lasted less than a year. Not only did he lose his testimony because he was not strong enough to carry the heavy burdens, but his constant traveling alienated him from his wife and family. He drifted into a “fringe group” and disappeared from public ministry, a broken and bankrupt man.

“His branches went out farther than his roots went deep,” the pastor said. “When that happens, you eventually topple.”

To Be Continued

Adapted and modified excerpts from Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary Volume 2.
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.