As Paul the apostle wrote to
the Philippians concerning the return of Epaphroditus the church's
pastor, he knew they would be very happy to see him. Epaphroditus had
been very sick, and the church members heard about it. In chapter two
and verse thirty Paul tells the Philippians why they should rejoice
so greatly when he returns to them. He wrote:
Because for the work of
Christ he was near unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your
lack of service toward me.
The
verse begins, “Because for the work of Christ he was near unto
death, not regarding his life,...” Paul shares the reason that
Epaphroditus was sick - “for the work of Christ”, and the
level of his sickness is shown by the next phrase - “he was near
unto death”. In other words Epaphroditus nearly died because he
worked to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we should note also
that he was not busy “regarding” which means “preserving
or protecting” “his life”. With near reckless abandon
and hazard Epaphroditus allowed himself to be exposed to dangers “for
the work of Christ”.
The
verse goes on to say, “...to supply your lack of service toward
me.” Upon first glance, this portion of the verse seems to
imply that somehow the Philippians purposefully lacked in service to
Paul, however, as we look further into this letter we see that they
“lacked opportunity” as recorded in chapter four and verse
ten. When the church felt they could not be of service to Paul the
apostle as they desired, they sent Epaphroditus to make up their
deficiency. The tremendous risk that Epaphroditus took to share with
Paul from the Philippians caused him to be sick, and nearly cost him
his life.
When we
think about the commitment of Epaphroditus we may be inclined to
wonder if there is any cause for which we would risk our health and
life. “The work of Christ” was worth it for Epaphroditus,
and those who know this depth of pledge toward the gospel sometimes
pay a great price for sharing it. Many people have given their lives
for the gospel, and others have lost their health, family, friends
and livelihood. Perhaps as we ponder Epaphroditus' work on behalf of
the Philippians we should examine our own lives to discover just how
committed we are to the cause of Christ, and as we do, let us pray
that the Lord will instill in us the desire to serve Him and His
kingdom work no matter the cost to ourselves personally.
Next
time we
begin a new chapter and see Paul encourage the Philippians to rejoice
in the Lord,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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