Our ministry: the work of Christ in the Church of Christ
Philippians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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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.
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.
For 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.
Introduction
Perhaps some of you have experienced the timeless struggle between dreamers and doers. There are are a some of us who are really good at coming up with new ideas and developing dreams and plans for the future. Our work may have us in a position of oversight requiring us to look ahead and plan ahead. On the other hand, there are some of us who are really good at getting the work done. We may be in a position at work where we have clearly defined expectations and we’re really good at meeting those expectations. At times there’s a struggle between these two people. The ideals and ambitions of dreamers are at times beyond what is actually possible and the doers have to tell them that. On the other hand, doers sometimes need some help getting the big picture. At the end of the day both are necessary! Often times there’s no leadership without logistics and no planning without production.
This little paradigm might be helpful for us as we look at ourselves as the church. We might ask ourselves, “What is our plan or vision for ministry?” and “How do we accomplish that plan?” Paul is a great example to us of someone who has a big picture, God-given vision as well as an intimate understanding for how the work gets done.
Specifically, Paul has a vision for the Church (universal) cooperating for the cause of the gospel, yet that big dream is not without direction. The ordinary doing of this work looks like Christ proclaimed in local churches and the sending of men who love local churches. At the end of the day, every local church does well to have a heart for the well-being of the universal Church and be ready to send out workers for the cause of Christ. Similarly, those with a vision and ambition for the expansion of the Church (universal) to all nations need be reminded that such a work cannot be accomplished without local churches doing the ordinary work of preaching the gospel.
The ministry of Christ in the church ought to accompany a concern for Christ in the Church.
The ministry of Christ in the church ought to accompany a concern for Christ in the Church.
Cooperation within the Church
Concern for the church.
Christ in the church
As we work through our text I’d like to set our two main characters Timothy and Epaphroditus in parallel. We’re going to see both characters participate in their own works of cooperation. Paul will describe both of their evident concerns for the church as well as the nature of their work: proclaiming Christ. We’ll be jumping back and forth between Timothy and Epaphroditus, but I’ll do my best to let you know where we are so you can follow along.
Cooperation within the Church
Cooperation within the Church
Notes:
Four times in our text, Paul mentions sending someone for the good of the church at Philippi. Two of the mentions are Timothy’s and two belong to Epaphroditus.
Timothy is sent:
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.
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.
Let’s step back for a moment and recognize the nature of Paul’s ministry and his history with Timothy so we can gain an appreciation for the cooperation that’s going on here.
And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build on another man’s foundation;
but as it is written,
“They who had no news of Him shall see,
And they who have not heard shall understand.”
For this reason I have often been prevented from coming to you;
but now, with no further place for me in these regions, and since I have had for many years a longing to come to you
whenever I go to Spain—for I hope to see you in passing, and to be helped on my way there by you, when I have first enjoyed your company for a while—
but now, I am going to Jerusalem serving the saints.
From the very beginning Paul’s ambition has been to see the gospel preached where Christ had not already been named. His ambitions extend to going to Spain.
When Timothy signs on to accompany Paul, this isn’t going to be an A to B trip. Paul’s far reaching vision and ambitions actually came to fruition. Some scholars believe Paul did actually make it to Spain, yet amidst that grand vision and ambition all along the way he was always focused on the well-being of local churches.
In that same text, we see Paul’s deep desire to see the church in Rome, but that he first needs to serve the saints in Jerusalem. As Paul’s companion, Timothy was going to be on the move, but he was always going to be serving some local body of believers.
Regarding the context of our text today, Paul is in Rome imprisoned, his ambitions likely still remain for the spread of the gospel to Spain. He could have sent Timothy ahead of him to Spain. “Go where I can’t go and ensure they have the gospel.” No, he keeps in mind the little church in Philippi that was planted ten years ago and decides to send one of the most qualified ministers of the gospel to make sure they’re doing well.
Paul himself mentions, “I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly.”
As much as Paul understands that the gospel must go forth, he also recognizes that no time is wasted in the care of local churches. Much more our time must always be devoted to the local church because God’s plan for the advancement of the gospel is and always will be the local church.
I’m afraid today many have grown comfortable with the idea of ministry being very general, broad, visionary, and ambitious and at the end of the day there’s no body of believers. Perhaps that is the result of our prioritization of conversion and getting people saved to the exclusion of ensuring the saved have a gathering place, a body of believers to serve with, grow with, and sit under the preaching of God’s word with.
Let’s absolutely concern ourselves with the salvation of the lost, but we keep in mind that being a Christian is more than being saved. It’s being a part of the Church (universal) and a local church, a body of believers.
I believe these few verses provide a sense of direction for us today with regards to how we might approach missions work.
It is good and right for us to have the same ambitions as Paul did! Let’s continually ask ourselves, where hasn’t the gospel been? Where are the unreached? In our day and age it’s not difficult to identify places of great need for the gospel. The difficult part is how we go about reaching them. Have we ever considered asking, where is the nearest gospel preaching church to this unreached people? What might it look like for us to serve that church and cooperate with them for the advancement of the gospel in their community.
Paul’s sending of Timothy gives us a vision for cooperation for the good of the local church.
Paul’s receiving and sending of Epaphroditus gives us a vision for the cooperation for the good of the universal church.
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;
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.
Toward the end of Philippians we recognize that Epaphroditus was originally sent by the church at Philippi with a financial gift for Paul.
But I have received everything in full and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.
It’s clear that when Paul left the church at Philippi, they did not see themselves as isolated. They knew that Paul was going to continue the advancement and care of the kingdom of which they were apart. This little church in Philippi, what may be the only church in Philippi, having paganism, persecution, and idolatry at their doorstep, has the maturity to think beyond their needs and their isolation to the needs of the Church universal.
They recognize that Paul’s service and calling is to serve the broader universal Church by serving local churches across the known world. The church at Philippi was committed to the advancement of The universal church of Christ and not just the advancement of ‘Christ Church Philippi’.
With this heart they gave generously. They found someone willing to take the risky journey of over 750 miles by boat and by foot to Rome to make sure Paul had what he needed. If you ask me, that’s sacrifice for the well-being of the saints. Can you imagine taking up our October missions offering and then having to find someone willing to make the delivery. Today, it’s easier for us to circumnavigate the globe than it would have been for Epaphroditus to go to Rome.
Paul having received this offering and service of Epaphroditus finds it necessary that Epaphroditus return to Philippi sending him eagerly for the sake of their joy. There’s a reciprocal effect to this cooperation that is noticeable! There’s a sense of relationship and mutual benefit between Paul and the church at Philippi. There isn’t one party that is the exclusive beneficiary.
I don’t think we ought be surprised that this cooperation with the universal church looks like the cooperation within the local church. No matter our gifts within the local church every member has a gift for the benefit of the body and each member benefits from the gifts of the others, including the pastors. In a similar way, Paul’s apostolic gifting does not mean he does not bring benefit to local churches and local churches benefit to him.
I hope we would recognize that the ambition for the gospel to the nations and the well-being of the universal is not relegated to those with a particular calling. Epaphroditus is not an individual with a heart for the spread of the gospel supported by a church who has a heart for Epaphroditus. Epaphroditus is apart of a church who has a heart for the advancement of the gospel and has been sent by them out of that shared heart for the Church of Christ.
For us today, we need not wait for one person to gain a particular calling to the mission field. Today, we can seek the heart of the Philippian church for the advancement of the gospel in every church and should the Lord grant us the privilege of sending missionaries one day, we can say we wholeheartedly support them and their cause, the cause of Christ proclaimed through every church.
Epaphroditus is an ordinary Christian committed to an ordinary gathering of believers and yet is wholly committed to the advancement of the kingdom, the church of Christ.
In the cooperation of both of these men, Timothy and Epaphroditus, between churches, we see their heart. There’s a deeply rooted concern for the well-being of the saints which Paul describes.
Concern for the church
Concern for the church
Notes:
Timothy’s concern for the church:
For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.
I find it a shocking statement frankly that Paul needs admit that there is no one else who has a concern for the welfare of the church at Philippi. At first thought, you might admit that the Church is still getting its footing in the world, perhaps there aren’t that many people who know about Philippi. Maybe there aren’t enough Christians with the awareness to have a concern for the church.
And yet, I wonder if this is a universal difficulty we all face.
I believe there’s a kind of process everyone needs to go through before arriving at this genuine concern for other local churches, and I wonder if it’s somewhat like playing in a band.
Whenever you start playing an instrument a lot of your practice is done by yourself. Your ear is trained to listen to your own instrument and you play accordingly.
Most Christians have a good ear for how their own church is doing with a little bit of time commitment and their able to help where the church has needs. This is excellent and fundamental to being a part of the band.
Something interesting happens when you try to play with a band for the first time. Your ear is all of sudden confronted with all the instruments and for a time it’s a challenge to not just listen to yourself. There’s oftentimes a lot of discontinuity in a band full of people who are used to playing by themselves. As your ear is trained you begin to be able to hear the other pieces of the band and play along.
As a mature Christian you begin to gain an ear for the well-being of the church across the U.S., in China, in Africa, in Europe. With a little time we mature to pray for these nations, giving towards their needs through missions offerings, and begin to play our part alongside the rest of the band in time and harmony.
At this point the band sounds great, but you may recognize in a band that’s been playing together for years, that each member knows what every other part is supposed to sound like. A good bassist knows how to play alongside a drummer because they know each other’s style and are able to recommend certain rhythms and note progressions because they know each other well and want to help them play their part in the band.
I believe there’s another step local churches can make to be the best member of the band they can be. Know the other band members and their parts. Knowing other local churches so we can effectively cooperate together to create a harmony of ministry for cause of Christ.
Let me be clear, I don’t think we ought to feel guilty for not being like Timothy. Timothy is an extraordinary individual in the grand scheme of church history, and I believe there are very few who actually step into shoes like that of Timothy, but Timothy’s heart is certainly praiseworthy and something worth striving for.
We might pray together as a church, “Father give us opportunity as a church to cooperate with other churches in the Dayton area for the cause of Christ and the furtherance of the gospel. Give us opportunity to fellowship and encourage believers in other churches in our area that we might develop a genuine concern for the welfare of churches beyond our own.”
Paul identifies Timothy as one who has a unique concern for the church, and yet Epaphroditus proves his concern for the church in extraordinary ways as well.
Epaphroditus’ concern for the church:
Philippians 2:25 b (NASB95)
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.
For 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.
Firstly, Paul identifies with Epaphroditus in the closest of terms.
Brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier.
Paul’s ministry is certainly extraordinary in nature! Multiple times Paul will make great journeys across the Mediterranean visiting churches. Doing evangelism in Asia minor to the degree that Scripture tells us
This took place for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
Paul is writing inspired Scripture which will endure for millennia, and yet Paul identifies himself in the closest of terms with an ordinary church as brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier.
You might expect the title brother being that they are both Christians, but fellow worker and soldier seems to identify a sharing in ministry. Though their ministries were different in just about every way, both of these men were devoted to Christ and devoted to His church. In this common devotion Paul can say, brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier.
I hope we can recognize ourselves here today as brothers, fellow workers and fellow soldiers with Paul. Not because we have extraordinary ministries as writers, extraordinary preachers, or evangelists to the whole of Miami Valley, but because we are devoted to the cause of Christ and the well-being of the local church.
Paul describes in some detail the extent of Epaphroditus’ devotion to the church at Philippi.
because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick.
For 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.
Have you ever met someone who could get hit by a log truck on a Friday, go to ER and show up to church on Sunday morning like nothing happened going around shaking hands and asking how everyone is doing. Someone asks, “Hey what’s that bruise on your forehead?” Oh just an accident.
That’s Epaphroditus! Epaphroditus is apparently distressed because the church heard that he was sick. He wasn’t distressed because he was sick to the point of death. He was distressed because he didn’t want the church to worry about him.
Epaphroditus’ concern for the universal Church extends to his own willingness to die for the furtherance of the gospel through Paul, and his concern for the local church at Philippi extends to his desire for their peace of heart undisturbed by even his own detriment.
Paul’s identification with Epaphroditus continues as he acknowledges the mercy of God given to him, Paul, in keeping Epaphroditus from death. Should that tragedy have come, Paul would have found himself in sorrow upon sorrow.
I find myself challenged by the depth of Paul’s cooperation with the local church. He’s working alongside them to the degree that he shares in their sufferings. We might ask ourselves, what are the needs and burdens of Koinos church in Troy, One Family Church just a few miles south of here off Main Street, Even Butler Community Church down the road meeting in Smith Middle School. When these churches are burdened are burdened with them? When the Lord’s mercy is extended to them do we rejoice with them?
Often times, concern for the church works itself out in the bearing of burdens: A willingness to bear our own burdens in self-sacrifice for the cause of Christ in the church down the street, but also a willingness to bear the burden of our brother or sister who is down the street.
Concern for the church looks like bearing one another’s burdens whether you attend the same church or not.
As much as concern of Timothy, Paul, and Epaphroditus for the good of the church is praiseworthy in and of itself, it does have definition beyond sacrifice and genuine concern. Timothy and Epaphroditus both are concerned primarily for the proclamation of Christ in the local church and in every church.
Christ in the church
Christ in the church
Notes:
Having praised Timothy for his unique concern for the church at Philippi, Paul goes further to define Timothy’s ambition.
Timothy’s ministry of Christ:
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.
In contrasting Timothy with those who did not have a concern for the welfare of the church at Philippi, Timothy is identified as one whose interests are aligned with that of Christ.
Notice the explicit association. Those whose interests are aligned with those of Christ’s are those who are genuinely concerned for the welfare of the local church. In short, we cannot be gospel people without being church people. It would be unthinkable to love the bridegroom and be indifferent towards the bride.
This is one reason we value church membership. We recognize the fundamental union between Christ and His church. To be a believer, and a confessor of the gospel is to be a part of the universal Church and participants in the local church. That is to physically gather together and devote ourselves to the well-being of a particular people because we are devoted to Christ and His interests, that is His bride.
Timothy’s ambitions for the interests of Christ and the furtherance of the gospel cannot be separated from His devotion to the well-being of the local church. The advancement of the gospel of Christ throughout the world necessarily means the planting, growth, and preservation of local churches.
Epaphroditus shares this same ambition with Timothy for the work of Christ and yet with a slight nuance.
Epaphroditus’ ministry of Christ:
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.
The desire which drove Epaphroditus nearly to death was the advancement of Christ in the universal church through the ministry of Paul. Epaphroditus didn’t try to be an apostle with his ambition, but rather humbled himself and recognized the man who was equipped, gifted, and called to advance the gospel through local churches across the globe. And so with his ambition for the work of Christ to be done, he said, “I’ll bring what I can to support Paul’s ministry.”
Epaphroditus is the other side of the coin if you will, Timothy being the other.
If Timothy’s ministry tells us: the advancement of the gospel of Christ throughout the world necessarily means the planting, growth and preservation of local churches.
Epaphroditus simply tells us the reverse that is equally true: The planting, growth, and preservation of local churches ought lead us to the advancement of the gospel around the globe.
Both of these are founded in an ambition for the advancement of the gospel and the kingdom of Christ and both are absolutely necessary.
This is perhaps the most important point of all. Wherever we may be called, the church here, the church down the street, or the church on the other side of the globe, our ambition is for the advancement of the gospel and the kingdom of Christ.
As much as we may only see a small slice of the kingdom on Sunday morning we are no less apart of the same cause to which Paul, Timothy, and Epaphroditus devoted themselves so many years ago: the advancement of the gospel in and through our church and every church where our brothers and sisters gather.
Being that most of us here are probably more like Epaphroditus, ordinary church members, how might we follow in his example?
Firstly, just think for a second how many churches you might pass on the way to church or the way to work? What might it look like to commit to briefly pray for the well-being of that church every time you drive by. Pray that Christ would be proclaimed and that the gospel would flourish in that church. Might we eagerly seek the growth of every gospel preaching church knowing we are ultimately for Christ’s universal church and the advancement of the kingdom!
Secondly, who can we pray for and support who have accepted an extraordinary calling to serve the church as missionaries. Paul the apostle needed the cooperation and support of the church at Philippi, and missionaries today require the cooperation and support of local churches. There’s a mutual benefit from this cooperation. Many of you know James Risner. James has devoted himself to churches across the Dayton area, and I’ve personally benefited from his service in just the few weeks I’ve been here. Let’s commit to pray for James and continue to support the ministry of the association in whatever way we can for the service they have provided to so many churches we care for.
A few final thoughts:
Today, the universal Church of Christ is comprised of many gatherings: different local churches where Christ is proclaimed. One day we will no longer be many gatherings but one gathering in the presence of Christ singing His praises and proclaiming his excellencies. As much as we cannot see that gathering today we wait for it. We hope for it with a sure hope. Let’s keep that final gathering in mind as we attend to the work of Christ here and now. We are not alone in this work.
By God’s grace let us desire, pray, and work for the advancement of gospel in this church and every church the Lord gives us opportunity to serve.
Let’s pray.
