"One Strange Herd"

[In the animated movie Ice Age, when saber-tooth tigers attack a tribe of nomads, a mother and her baby attempt to outrun the man-eating beasts but are cornered at a raging waterfall. The little boy is discovered by a wooly mammoth named Manfred, a sloth name Sid, and a saber-tooth tiger named Diego. These three unlikely companions unite on a common mission to return the baby to his father.

[In the animated movie Ice Age, when saber-tooth tigers attack a tribe of nomads, a mother and her baby attempt to outrun the man-eating beasts but are cornered at a raging waterfall. The little boy is discovered by a wooly mammoth named Manfred, a sloth name Sid, and a saber-tooth tiger named Diego. These three unlikely companions unite on a common mission to return the baby to his father.

As the trio treks through a mountainous terrain of ice and snow carrying the baby, at one point the mammoth, sloth, and tiger realize they're on an erupting volcano. The heat of the lava melts the glacier bridges atop the ice fields, separating Diego from the others. Isolated on a quickly melting island of ice, Diego jumps to reach the others, but falls short. Dangling from the edge of the ice field, his grip falters, and he falls. Manfred, unwilling to let Diego perish, leaps into a chasm after him and tosses the tiger upwards to safety. Diego, realizing the danger involved in the rescue, is moved by Manfred's compassion, courage, and sacrifice.

"Why did you do that?" he asks. "You could have died trying to save me."

Humbly, the mammoth responds, "That's what you do when you're part of a herd. You look after each other." Amazed at the convergence of circumstances that has brought these three together, Sid muses aloud. "I don't know about you guys, but we are one strange herd.”]

Introduction:

One strange herd! Don’t you feel like that’s a great description of the church sometimes? A mix of people with different personalities, different backgrounds, different ideas sometimes, who might never hang out together— except for the one thing that we have in common: we love Jesus. And in one way or another, we have been transformed by His amazing love and mercy. Because of that, we hang out together. But even more than that, as the film illustrates in a cute way, as a “herd” of Christ followers, we look after each other—even if we might look a little strange at times.

When the church is working right, it becomes a place where our old nature and our old instincts begin to die and we start thinking completely different about the people around us. People who we might never have associated with before, or people who we never would have thought we would befriend, suddenly become our brothers and sisters. And we find ourselves wanting to bring in more and more of those who might not belong anywhere else—we find a place for them. And our herd, our community, becomes a place of love and service; a place where people experience the transforming power of Jesus as work in their lives.

If there is one theme that permeates Paul’s letter to the Philippians, it’s this theme of sacrificial love and service. It’s the way that Paul introduces himself and Timothy right in the first sentence in , where he says

Philippians 1:1 NLT

1 This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus. I am writing to all of God’s holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the church leaders and deacons.

It’s at the heart of ; the famous passage which describes how Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords descended to become one of us; even more than that, he descended to become our slave, serving us.

Philippians 2:6–7 NLT

6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form,

All this servant and sacrifice talk sets the stage for the section of his letter that we will read this morning where Paul talks about his friends, Timothy and Epaphroditus. Please turn to .

Philippians 2:19–30 NLT

19 If the Lord Jesus is willing, I hope to send Timothy to you soon for a visit. Then he can cheer me up by telling me how you are getting along. 20 I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare. 21 All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ. 22 But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News. 23 I hope to send him to you just as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me here. 24 And I have confidence from the Lord that I myself will come to see you soon. 25 Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier. And he was your messenger to help me in my need. 26 I am sending him because he has been longing to see you, and he was very distressed that you heard he was ill. 27 And he certainly was ill; in fact, he almost died. But God had mercy on him—and also on me, so that I would not have one sorrow after another. 28 So I am all the more anxious to send him back to you, for I know you will be glad to see him, and then I will not be so worried about you. 29 Welcome him in the Lord’s love and with great joy, and give him the honor that people like him deserve. 30 For he risked his life for the work of Christ, and he was at the point of death while doing for me what you couldn’t do from far away.

All this servant and sacrifice talk sets the stage for the section of his letter that we just read where Paul talks about his friends, Timothy and Epaphroditus. These are wonderful verses tucked away inside his letter that remind us that Paul was not writing some kind of theological dissertation. This is a letter; a letter from a friend to a group of friends. From a very real person with real problems, feelings and character, to a real group of people with their own unique character and issues.

These are wonderful verses tucked away inside his letter that remind us that Paul was not writing some kind of theological dissertation. This is a letter; a letter from a friend to a group of friends. From a very real person with real problems, feelings and character, to a real group of people with their own unique character and issues.

We know that when Paul wrote this letter, he was in prison. But we don’t know exactly where. Though we don’t know where he is, we do know that he is in a bad situation. He is far from his home. Far from his friends. Unable to carry out the calling that he is so passionate about, which is to share the message of Jesus with whoever he can, wherever he can. And in this prison, he feels an incredible sense of distance from his friends in Philippi , people that he cares deeply about.

But he has not been completely alone. Things are not all bad. What makes this section so meaningful is the impression that two of his very good friends, Timothy and Epaphroditus, have been around. And what we see in these verses is how they have served as connecting points between him and the church in Philippi . They have blessed him as friends right there in prison. But they have also been a link between him and his faraway friends.

We see this in the way that Paul speaks about Timothy. In verse 19, Paul talks about how he hopes to send Timothy to them as soon as possible. You’ll notice that in his description of Timothy, the servant theme comes right to the front again.

Listen to how he talks about Timothy in :

Philippians 2:20–23 NLT

20 I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare. 21 All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ. 22 But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News. 23 I hope to send him to you just as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me here.

One of the important pieces of background information that his helpful to know about the letter to the Philippians is that one of the issues that the Philippian church was struggling with was over bad teaching by self-focused teachers. There were people at work in the community who were trying to gain power and authority over everyone and were willing to talk down Paul in order to get what they wanted.

His response to the leadership crisis in Philippi is to send two of his friends to them to address the situation. In these two friends we see the ingredients of true community.

Timothy

The first is Timothy. What you’ll notice about Timothy is that he doesn’t get sent to Philippi to help resolve their issues because he has such great credentials in teaching and leadership. It’s not that he has more skills. The one qualification that makes Timothy the perfect person to visit them is his character: he has a servant heart. He is completely unselfish. His main goal is not to focus on his own interests, but that of Jesus. Timothy lives his life in complete contrast to the teachers in Philippi .

What you’ll notice about Timothy is that he doesn’t get sent to Philippi to help resolve their issues because he has such great credentials in teaching and leadership. It’s not that he has more skills. The one qualification that makes Timothy the perfect person to visit them is his character: he has a servant heart. He is completely unselfish. His main goal is not to focus on his own interests, but that of Jesus. Timothy lives his life in complete contrast to the teachers in Philippi .

With just a few short words, Paul adds Timothy to the list of examples that he’s been using to teach the Philippians what servanthood really is. He began with Jesus, quoting a marvelous hymn in

Philippians 2:6–7 NLT

6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form,

Philippians 2 NLT

1 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. 14 Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. 16 Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. 17 But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. 18 Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy. 19 If the Lord Jesus is willing, I hope to send Timothy to you soon for a visit. Then he can cheer me up by telling me how you are getting along. 20 I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare. 21 All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ. 22 But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News. 23 I hope to send him to you just as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me here. 24 And I have confidence from the Lord that I myself will come to see you soon. 25 Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier. And he was your messenger to help me in my need. 26 I am sending him because he has been longing to see you, and he was very distressed that you heard he was ill. 27 And he certainly was ill; in fact, he almost died. But God had mercy on him—and also on me, so that I would not have one sorrow after another. 28 So I am all the more anxious to send him back to you, for I know you will be glad to see him, and then I will not be so worried about you. 29 Welcome him in the Lord’s love and with great joy, and give him the honor that people like him deserve. 30 For he risked his life for the work of Christ, and he was at the point of death while doing for me what you couldn’t do from far away.

Then in , he gives his own testimony, talking about how he is being poured out like a drink offering, which is an incredibly vivid picture of suffering for Jesus. And then points out Timothy, who truly takes an interest in their welfare and is focused on Jesus in everything. It is the faith and character of Timothy that makes him eminently qualified to deal with the unbalanced leadership in Philippi . They are out for their own gain and advantage. Timothy is all about Jesus and only Jesus.

Philippians 2:17 NLT

17 But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy.

So the first example of community is Paul’s friend Timothy.

Epaphroditus

His second example of community is his friend Epaphroditus. We know a fair bit about Timothy because we can read about him in other places in Scripture. But this is the only place in the Bible where we read about Epaphroditus, so we know nothing of his background.

Timothy and Epaphroditus provide the perfect set of gifts for a hurting church. In Timothy, we see someone who embodies Truth in a beautiful way. Because of his character, he is the perfect person to model what it means to have the mind of Christ, to counteract the craziness that’s going on in the church. Timothy doesn’t just know the Truth of Jesus, he lives it.

Well, if Timothy embodies truth, then perhaps we could say that Epaphroditus embodies love.

Specifically, he represents Paul’s love for the Philippians. Going back to the idea of community, that we are one strange herd, brought together into unity in Jesus, Timothy and Epaphroditus gives us a beautiful example of what it looks like to help foster beautiful community. They embody the two ingredients that help the church function at its best: truth and love. Let’s take a closer look at just who Epaphroditus was and how he demonstrated strong Christian love.

Epaphroditus seems to have been sent to Paul by the Philippian church. They were so concerned about Paul’s condition in prison, that they sent someone to go and care for him on their behalf. If, as many believe, Paul was in Caesarea , than the journey from Philippi took more than a month, most of it by ship. This was no small commitment of time and money. We know that it was a challenging journey because Paul tells us that Epaphroditus became so ill on the way that he almost died.

So the Philippians sent Epaphroditus to Paul to encourage him. Now, after he has been with him for a while, Paul is sending Epaphroditus back to the Philippians, likely carrying this letter with him.

We are talking about being a community and I have seen times when we have pulled together as a community. Let me give you an example of how I have seen that working in our own community…there have been times when we have needed to raise money to send our students to camp or fine arts. There has never been a doubt in my mind when we all pull together we can do what God has called us to do! We have continually been able to raise money to send our students to camp and fine arts each year. We are faithful in giving to BGMC above our tithes. When we have outreaches (such as VBS, HarvestFest, Block Party, etc.), many of us dive right in and help to accomplish the task at hand and make it the best we can do. Although we have learned to come together as a community more easily these past few years, we still have some things we can work on to be more effective in God’s community; spiritual family.

Conclusion: (2 Challenges)

The challenge of the journey of Timothy is not only knowing about the truth but also living it. There may be some here this morning who have been raised in church, etc. You know about the truth, you can quote bible verses, but you don’t live the truth because you haven’t ask Jesus into your heart.

The challenge is for each of us is to walk the journey of Epaphroditus.

For some of us, we need to move from being observers of the community to a place where we embrace the people of this community as brothers and sisters. It may be that we need to take a step toward membership. We need to begin speaking of our church as “our church,” not just “your church.” It is a very significant decision to embrace a community of believers as your own, and see yourself as on a journey together. If you haven’t yet taken that step, I encourage you to speak to an elder or someone you trust to talk about how you can join the family as a brother or sister. And what we want to say to you is that Jesus welcomes you and we welcome you to experience life as brothers and sisters together.

Others of us have embraced this community as our family, but there is room to grow. For us the challenge may be to take our involvement to another level where we see ourselves as fellow workers.

A great analogy is a dinner table. As someone has said, both dinner guests and family members may enjoy the same meal. The difference is that at the end of the meal, family members also do the dishes. It’s appropriate to be a dinner guest—for a while. But there comes a time when it’s appropriate to get up and help with the dishes. Perhaps there are areas that God has laid on your heart where you would love to dive into community and service, but you just haven’t dared to yet. Helping with one of our kid’s programs; Sunday School, Kids church/Little church, Royal Rangers, assisting our youth, creating a visitation team, serving on a maintenance team. Perhaps God is nudging some of us to just make ourselves more available to the life and ministry of our church—for His sake!

A great analogy is a dinner table. As someone has said, both dinner guests and family members may enjoy the same meal. The difference is that at the end of the meal, family members also do the dishes. It’s appropriate to be a dinner guest—for a while. But there comes a time when it’s appropriate to get up and help with the dishes. Perhaps there are areas that God has laid on your heart where you would love to dive into community and service, but you just haven’t dared to yet. Helping with one of our kid’s programs; Sunday School, Kids church/Little church, Royal Rangers, assisting our youth, creating a visitation team, serving on a maintenance team. Perhaps God is nudging some of us to just make ourselves more available to the life and ministry of our church—for His sake!

The final challenge is for those who may see themselves as fellow workers but need to press that another step forward. Perhaps God is inviting you to see yourself as a fellow soldier. That raises some significant questions: What does it mean for me to really live sacrificially for the Lord? Where is God calling me to surrender my life? What does it mean for me to step out and faith and trust that God will work through me if I let him? Is the Holy Spirit nudging me toward some kind of deeper commitment, to pursue a specific calling?

True community doesn’t happen overnight. But when each person in the family begins to wrestle with their own place in the church and takes a step toward deeper relationship, slowly, the community grows. People who would normally never hang out together begin to love each other and even lay down their lives for each other for one simple reason: Jesus laid down His life for us. It is my prayer that our community would become a place filled with people who know each other as brothers and sisters, fellow workers and fellow soldiers. To the world, we might look like one strange herd, but when the love of Jesus flows through us, they’ll desperately want to join in this amazing journey of faith—together.