REUNION AND RECONCILIATION

Philippians 2:19-30
Bob Bonner
June 22, 2008

Summer is often a time for reunions with family and friends. We greet these events with joy, anticipation, and sometimes trepidation. We long to see family whom we have missed, especially when there have been concerns about their well being. We are typically excited and relieved when we finally catch sight of them and reconnect. However, realistically, just being together with extended family will often create some tension and bring up past issues that may need to be resolved so that relationships can be healthily reconciled. Generally speaking, reunions are opportunities for us to reestablish healthy relationships with those that matter.

This same need for reunion and reconciliation was true for the Apostle Paul and his beloved friends and church family at Philippi. This morning, we will see what kind of character is necessary for reestablishing and maintaining healthy relationships with friends and family members.

As we get into our study, allow me to set the stage for what we are about to read. After his salutation and prayer for the Philippians in 1:1-11, Paul writes about “his affairs,” his reflections on his present imprisonment, in verses 12-26. Then in 1:27-2:18, Paul makes his first appeal to them about “their affairs”--that they, as a church family, quit living for their own selfish interest and get back to the united effort of making the gospel priority number one in their lives. Now he proceeds to give them the details of his plan to visit them in 2:19-30. This brief narrative, his proposed itinerary, is full of warmth and pathos; his affection for the Philippians spills over in these verses. This passage serves as a reminder to all of us that the New Testament was written in the context of real people in a very real world who faced very real challenges to walking faithfully with Jesus Christ.

In this proposed itinerary, Paul tells them that before he himself comes to them, he will be sending two others before him. He doesn’t mention here why he can’t immediately leave Rome, but if you have been with us when we studied 1:12-26, you will remember that Paul has been in jail for almost two years awaiting his opportunity as a Roman citizen to have an audience with Caesar concerning his wrongful arrest. Paul is confident that either Caesar will grant him his release or, according to Roman law, at the end of two years if his case is not settled, he will automatically be released. Either way, he is expecting to be free soon. But for the meantime, he has to remain in Rome. 

Feeling pressed to get word back to his friends as to what is happening to him and their dear friend whom they had sent to visit Paul, a man named Epaphroditus, Paul tells them that he plans to send Timothy and Epaphroditus to them. But, as we will read in verses 19-24, his plans to send Timothy will have to wait until his imprisonment situation appears to be resolved. Therefore, as he will tell us in verses 25-30, his immediate plan is to send Epaphroditus right away.

But why send these guys ahead of him? Why doesn’t Paul just wait six to nine months and all three of them go together? He answers that question in our verses for this morning. Basically, it has to do with some pressing needs at Philippi that must be dealt with immediately, and Paul can’t get there soon enough to do so. Furthermore, Paul wants some fresh news as to whether or not this troubled church has begun to turn things around and to become united and spiritually healthy as a family. Have they returned to their primary objective of making the truth of the gospel known? If he waits until his release to get there, it may be nine months instead of two before he can give them some help in resolving their church family problems. By then, it may be too late?

Before we begin reading the passage, there is one other noteworthy observation to be made about the overall context of this letter. Whether intended by Paul or by the leading of the Holy Spirit, this section that we are about to study relates to the previous section, 1:27-2:18, in that it gives the Philippians and us two examples of humble men who have put others’ interests above their own. These two men stand in stark contrast to those in Philippi who have arrogantly made their own selfish points of view more important than the gospel and the overall spiritual health of their church family. If the Philippian church is going to return to health, they will need to follow after Timothy’s and Epaphroditus’ examples.  These men both served unselfishly, considering others better than themselves. 

Even though these men were of such importance to Paul at this time in his life, they were also of value to the church at Philippi. Because he cared so much for the church family at Philippi, Paul, at great sacrifice to himself, was going to send them on ahead of him to Philippi. Even within the church in Rome, Paul had few friends. Most of his friends in Rome had deserted him, probably because of the pressures placed on them by the other Christian leaders in Rome who, out of jealousy for the attention that the Apostle Paul was receiving from many Christians in their city, had spread lies and rumors about Paul and the reason he was really in jail. So, to bid farewell to both of these dear friends was not easy. 

Paul begins by explaining his sending of Timothy. He writes: “But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father.  Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me; and I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly.”

From these verses we can see at least two reasons, possibly three, why Paul is going to send Timothy to Philippi. First, Timothy is coming to encourage them and probably to further exhort them, if need be, to resolve their differences and get back to following and honoring Jesus Christ. Secondly, Timothy is coming to find out what condition the church family is in, to see how they have responded to this letter, and then to report back that information to Paul. A third possible reason for Timothy going to Philippi was to reassure them that Paul was coming shortly himself to be with them.

But even though Paul intends to send Timothy and Epaphroditus to Philippi, and to later go there himself, notice how he views his own plans. He says, “But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly.” This saying, “I hope in the Lord Jesus,” is not some stock “Lord willing,” but rather “under the Lordship of Christ or in submission to His perfect will and timing” I will send Timothy. As with every other aspect of Paul’s life, his plans, aspirations, dreams, and expectations were always in submission to the Lord. By so qualifying his intention, the apostle was registering his conviction that human plans are always subject to the sovereign will of the Lord. Man proposes but God disposes.  However, this “I hope in the Lord” qualifier plus the change in verse 24 to “I trust in the Lord” when referring to his own coming suggest that Paul’s personal sense of his future is that he would certainly be released.

Further, when he states that he plans to send Timothy “shortly” or “soon”, his idea is really “as soon as possible.” In other words, Timothy is not coming right away. His coming to them will be delayed. Why? Because in verse 23 Paul says that he first must “see how things go with me” before he can release Timothy. This suggests that Paul still needs Timothy with him in Rome, possibly to help with his upcoming appointment with Caesar.

But why Timothy, of all people? What is so special about Timothy that Paul would send him to Philippi? There are several reasons. First, Timothy was with Paul in Philippi twelve years previous to this when the church was first planted. These people knew and trusted Timothy. Verse 22 speaks of his “proven worth” or “proven character,” meaning proven to the Philippians first hand. This word “proven” was used to refer to the testing of precious metals by the heat of fire.  It was coined by Paul, pointing to one’s character that had been tested as though through fire.  Timothy was never one to run from responsibility. He was quiet and timid by nature, but never a coward or deserter or one who displayed irresponsibility. He was known, tested, and trusted.

Secondly, just in case there were any questions about Timothy and his possibly having changed in character, Paul adds that Timothy is the only one around who is “a kindred spirit.” That expression “kindred spirit” is made up of two terms in Greek meaning “equal” and “soul”, or “same souled.” Paul and Timothy were like-minded. They understood one another on a deeper level—something many people rarely experience. That doesn’t mean they never disagreed, just that their hearts were linked. He was like a child serving his father. That’s why Paul felt comfortable sending Timothy to Philippi. “You get Timothy: you get me!” was Paul’s opinion.

Furthermore, Timothy was different than all the others in Rome, who “all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.”  Paul says that Timothy alone cares for the Philippians’ genuine welfare as well as Jesus’ interests. When it came to plans, family, success, hobbies, retirement, vacation, or other personal concerns, Timothy was committed to doing that which was most important to the Lord over any of them.

In the end, Timothy had proven himself to be one who loved and worked well with others. Out of a handful of men who were available to Paul for this assignment, only Timothy had the credentials. 

Yet when you read those words, don’t you just wonder what Paul would say about us as individuals and as a church family? Would he look at our church and say, “All seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus”? Someone has observed that our churches in America are filled with commotion and emotion. There are a lot of programs running during the week and some high-powered, emotional worship services, but there is very little genuine devotion to Christ. For if we were really devoted to Christ, to serving Him together in obedience, the local church family would be much healthier in our relationships with one another.

So, having told them that Timothy will be coming eventually, Paul now tells them whom he is going to immediately send their way and why. That’s the Philippians’ fellow citizen and church member, Epaphroditus. But to really get the full impact of these verses, we must consider more closely this real life historical situation. As best we can piece the events together, this is what had occurred to Epaphroditus when he went to visit Paul on behalf of the small church at Philippi, delivering the financial gift that would enable Paul to survive in jail and to eventually return home. For unlike jails in America, in Rome (and most foreign countries) the government only provided the bare minimum. It was up to family and friends to bring in clothing, better food, toiletries, or other basic necessities. This was the purpose of Epaphroditus’ trip to bring the gift from Paul’s church family in Philippi. They were making sure that he was cared for. This gift probably amounted to a considerable sum of money. Therefore, Epaphroditus probably did not travel alone with it for this two month journey. 

Along the way, Epaphroditus took ill, but rather than turn back and return to Philippi, at great risk to himself, he pushed on to Rome to make sure that Paul received this gift of money. Those traveling with Epaphroditus undoubtedly did all they could to keep him comfortable, as ill as he was, but they were at the mercy of God as to whether or not he would recover. Not able to stay long, Epaphroditus’ friends returned home, leaving Epaphroditus in Rome to get well on his own. Not having email or cell phones to keep in touch, these friends carried with them the latest and only news their friends back home could receive concerning Epaphroditus: “Epaphroditus is deathly ill, and we don’t think he will make it.” So, literally for months, his family and friends back home had no idea if he had died or not.

With that as the historical back drop, allow me to give you a quick outline of verses 25-30. These verses fall into two paragraphs. The first paragraph, verses 25-27, gives the reason for Epaphroditus’ return from his point of view--his need. He is anxious to get home. The second part, verses 28-30, gives the reasons he needed to come home from the Philippians point of view--their need.

Let’s read both paragraphs and then make some observations. “But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need; because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick. or indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I have sent him all the more eagerly so that when you see him again you may rejoice and I may be less concerned about you. Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard; because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was deficient in your service to me.”

This paragraph tells us just about everything we know about this man Epaphroditus. First, his Greek name tells us something about him. It means “charming”, which indeed he was. And for Paul to call this Greek “my brother” reveals the special affection Paul had for him. For not many years before, when Paul was a Pharisee and persecutor of Christians, he would have called this Greek man a “Gentile dog.” But now, Paul calls him “my brother, my fellow worker, and my fellow soldier.”

Of “fellow worker,” Dr. James Boice states that there are three areas in which Christians should be counted on as being hard workers; but more often than not, they are not. First is in the intellectual field. Sadly, too much of what is being written and sold in Christian book stores today is fluff or Christian fiction. We need clear thinkers, winsome writers, and persuasive apologists who can reverse the trends being pushed from the world. Secondly, he says that we need to recapture our hard work in the social realm. It used to be the strength of the evangelical church. The church was the one leading the way in the abolishment of such things as slavery, child labor, and poor working conditions. It used to be the church and the Salvation Army that cared for feeding the poor, until the government stepped in with its entitlement programs that have little or no oversight. As is, the church today still picks up much of the slack, but we could work harder to do more. Then third, Boice points to our need to return with renewed vigor to the area of missions and evangelism.  These were all things that were typical of the early church and of people like Epaphroditus.

The third term that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is a “fellow soldier.” Soldiers learning to fight shoulder to shoulder accounted for the success of Rome’s armies. Prior to the triumph of Rome, men fought mostly as individuals. They often dressed alike, but they did not fight side by side. The Roman armies did, and as a result the phalanxes of the legions were the terror of the ancient world. The soldiers marched abreast behind a solid wall of shields. As they marched they struck their shields with their spears in unison and sang battle songs. In such a way, we are to advance in harmony against the spiritual powers arrayed against us. Epaphroditus was that kind of soldier, ready to put his life on the line for his brother.

To use the descriptive terms “brother” once and “fellow” twice points to a man who must have been of a harmonious disposition. Had Epaphroditus been quarrelsome, nagging, restless, self-centered, ready to pick out faults, and quick to criticize, he might still, in Christian charity, have been called a worker and a soldier, but he would not have been awarded those titles “brother” and “fellow”.

Besides those three descriptive terms for Epaphroditus--“my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier”--Paul adds two more. He calls him “your messenger,” meaning one sent to perform a given task, to give Paul their gift which was necessary to sustain his life in prison. 

Paul’s final description of Epaphroditus was to call him a “minister to my need.” This term “minister” is not the typical term for minister used in the New Testament, from which we get our word “deacon”, but another term used of someone performing an official and sacred service. By using this expression, Paul is pointing to the Philippian church’s sending of Epaphroditus and his service to him as a sacrificial act of worship that brings glory to God.

Not only was Epaphroditus a strong man that could endure hardship and illness, he was also one who had a tender side, revealed in his deep-felt concern for others. In verse 26, Paul tells us that Epaphroditus was “distressed.” This term is used of Christ in Gethsemane. It describes the confused, restless, half-distracted state which is produced by physical derangement or mental distress. Epaphroditus was concerned for his friends and family back home worrying about his own ill health. This so bothered him that he wanted to get back home to let them know he was all right.

So Paul wisely sent Epaphroditus home because of his need to be there. But clearly, Paul realized that the Philippians needed to have him there for the obvious reason of relieving their concern over what had happened to him. But then Paul says something in verses 29-30 that points to other reasons for Epaphroditus’ needing to return to Philippi. Most believe that one of the most important reasons that Paul sent Epaphroditus home was that he was the bearer of this very letter. The only way that Paul could help this spiritually sickly church get back on its feet was to send his letter back with a leader who fully understood its content and who could answer any questions the church family would have about their situation. It is for this reason that Paul encourages the church at Philippi to hold Epaphroditus in high regard.

Epaphroditus was not coming home because he failed. Hardly! Three times Paul mentions how seriously ill Epaphroditus was. He had accomplished what he was sent to do, and they have every reason to be proud of him for his dedication and determination to get their gift to Paul. Also, Epaphroditus had not overstayed his welcome. Paul would have loved to have kept him there with him, but they would have continued to worry if he had.

In addition, Epaphroditus was not returning home because he was fearful of staying in Rome and being persecuted as a Christian. Just the opposite. Paul points to Epaphroditus as a brave person. In verse 30, Paul coined a Greek word never before used in Greek literature to described Epaphroditus when he said that he had “risked his life.”  But after Paul’s use of this word, it is found often in literature to described persons who risked their lives to nurse those sick with the plague. Its root word comes from gambling or reckless living. Epaphroditus was no coward but a courageous person willing to take enormous risks, ready to play with very high stakes in order to come to the aid of a person in need, and in this case, it was Paul.

Furthermore, Paul states in verse 30 that Epaphroditus made “up for the help you could not give me.” This was not a pejorative remark or put down. Paul was realistically saying that Epaphroditus did for them what they couldn’t but Paul knew they wished they could. 

Hence, because of Epaphroditus’ faithful service, Paul wants them to honor him and to listen to him, as he was Paul’s ambassador to them and most likely the one who read Paul’s letter to them.  Even as tender and gentle as Paul tried to be with his words in this letter, they were going to be read as words of correction to a group of Christians who had become very selfish and in turn disunited. When they could no longer hide from their own arrogance and selfishness that had brought about such division in the church, their first response might have been to “kill the messenger.” Paul says, “Don’t do that! Honor him. If the shoe fits, wear it; but don’t kill the messenger.”

From this, Dr. Roger Ellsworth points to this important lesson: the people of God are not to take faithful servants of Christ for granted but rather to hold them in high esteem.  That’s why we have “the order of the towel” that we pass out each year on Promotion Sunday, honoring folks among us who have sacrificially served this church family. That’s why we have honored staff and elders at times as they have set the pace for the rest of us as to what it means to sacrificially give to others. 

People who are bound up by self interest don’t typically think of how to honor others, even their parents, spouse, or children. When was the last time, other than your wedding anniversary, that you did something really special for your spouse to honor them? When was the last time, other than Father’s Day or Mother’s Day, that you honored your parents? When was the last time you set aside a special time to tell your kids how proud you are of what they do that’s right? Or how about those who have spiritually impacted your life, such as Sunday School teachers, Bible Study leaders, or those who have discipled you? I have to tell you that I am truly grateful for a specific man who was my mentor 40 years ago, and just recently, I finally figured out a way to honor him for the impact that his investment in my life for two years had on me. I know it has been an encouragement to him and his wife, but I will never be able to repay him for showing me how Christ can daily make a difference in my life. We all have faithful servants around us who steadfastly can be counted on. How have you honored them?

Both Timothy and Epaphroditus were true brothers and friends not only of the Apostle Paul but also of their church family in Philippi. They were humble men who sacrificially loved others; they could be counted on. How about you? Below are some questions you might want to think about concerning your role in your church family. Are you more like Timothy and Epaphroditus, or are you more like Euodia and Syntyche whom Paul refers to in Philippians 4:2, who so stuck on their views and positions that they caused divisions in the church?

 What are the limits of my friendship? Do I use people, or do I lay down my life for them? How much do I experientially know of practicing sacrificial love toward others? Am I willing to set my own personal agenda aside when the feelings of others are at stake?

 What is my impact on others? Am I a change agent for godliness in my friend’s life? Is he/she more of a disciple of Christ because of me? Am I giving away myself in such a way that God-given needs are being met in his/her life? How am I helping my friend realize his potential in any area of life? Is he fruitful for Christ because of me?

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