What The Church of Today Needs

MAY 30, 2021 STUDY NOTES PHILIPPIANS 2:26-30 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES WHAT THE CHURCH OF TODAY NEEDS INTRODUCTION The closing verses of Philippians 2 are not among the most likely text for a Sunday Sermon But it is Sunday Morning, and we are in a verse-by verse study of Philippians, so, here we are I doubt that you have any of these verses marked in your Bible as something special to you But maybe we can learn something special from them in our study today Paul explains why he thought Epaphroditus was the man to send to the Philippians From what Paul says, we learn that we need those like Epaphroditus in our church today We need those who are sincerely concerned about others and ready to minister to them CONCERN FOR ONE ANOTHER Php 2:26 For he longed after you all, and was full of heaviness, because that ye had heard that he had been sick. There was a great concern for one another among each of the ones identified in Philippians 2 Paul was concerned about the Philippians, the Philippians were concerned about Paul The Philippians were concerned about Epaphroditus because they heard that he was sick Epaphroditus was concerned about the Philippians because they were concerned about him, FOR HE LONGED AFTER YOU ALL Epaphroditus had the same concern for the Philippians that Paul himself had, Php 1:8 For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. To “long after” speaks of an earnest desire because of a great affection From which comes care, concern, compassion, sympathy, and the most tender love The kind of love that motivates our actions to do something, the love that is of God Compassionate love that cannot be held back, love that must minister to the needs of others Pray that Prairie Grove Baptist will always be filled with the love that “must” minister to others Epaphroditus had a deep concern for the Philippians, he WAS FULL OF HEAVINESS His concern was overwhelming, he was deeply troubled at the thought of not doing something His burden was not his own personal problems, his worry was for those who worried about him What a testimony for a church family to have, exactly what Paul had already presented, Php 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Php 2:4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. If that is our testimony, then we will experience what Paul describes in, 1Co 12:26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Exactly what was taking place in the heart of Epaphroditus and the Philippians He was troubled BECAUSE THAT YE HAD HEARD THAT HE HAD BEEN SICK He was concerned about them because they were so concerned about him They had heard of his illness and were filled with sorrow, he sorrowed because of their sorrow What goes through your mind when you learn of the sickness, the sorrow, of a church member? When a prayer request comes to your attention, how much attention do you give to it? Are you concerned about the concerns of your church family? Is their sorrow your sorrow also? Page 1 of 5 Php 2:27 For indeed he was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. What they had heard was true, FOR INDEED HE WAS SICK He did have a physical illness, we are not told what it was, but we are told how bad it was Paul said he was NIGH UNTO DEATH, to the point of death, death was standing at the door In today’s explanation we would say that he was now under the care of hospice Paul tells us that he was under God’s care, BUT GOD HAD MERCY ON HIM We can thank God for the medical field of today, what great medical facilities we have today Yet, we still hear the medical profession say, “we don’t know,” there is nothing else we can do In the book of Acts, we read of several occasions where Paul exercised the gift of healing Here we are not told that Paul had anything to do with the healing of Epaphroditus There is no doubt that Paul was praying for his healing, and his healing was attributed to God The hand of God does not always heal, but all healing is ultimately the hand of God’s mercy We are continually reminded that ultimate healing is in the hand of God according to His will The kindness of God was not only bestowed upon Epaphroditus, but also upon Paul AND NOT ON HIM ONLY, BUT ON ME ALSO Which brings us back to the deep concern that Paul had for Epaphroditus Paul explains how important the healing of Epaphroditus was to him, LEST I SHOULD HAVE SORROW UPON SORROW Paul was sorrowful because he was in prison and was not able to go to the Philippians His sadness and grief had increased because of the sickness of Epaphroditus The death of Epaphroditus would have been emotionally stressful to Paul He would have experienced extreme grief and a heaviness of heart, but God was merciful Here is a good place to consider the question, “why do Christians get sick and die?” When we are saved, we receive a new spiritual nature, which is known as regeneration “Regeneration'' explains how a person becomes a Christian, regeneration means to be born again “Regeneration'' is the imparting of the divine nature to man, the receiving of the spiritual nature It is not a change of the old nature, the old nature remains, which is also known as the “flesh” Flesh is the body or physical nature in which we live and is subject to sin, suffering, and sickness The Christian continues to live in a corruptible body, the corruptible body that goes to the grave As long as we live in a corruptible body we will experience, disease, decay, and death Physical healing can and does take place through Christ which is a pledge of the redeemed body The redemption of the body will not be until the time of the return of Christ to the earth Christ will resurrect the body of the Christian, 1Co 15:42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: The natural body that we live in will go to the grave and be resurrected, 1Co 15:44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. Living in a corruptible body continually reminds us of the truth and consequences of sin Without Christ we would experience the eternal pains of soul and body, which is known as Hell Through the spiritual life we realize what Christ has accomplished for us in “regeneration” Which is found in the closing verses of 1 Corinthians 15, 1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. Our world today considers the physical state to be far more important than the spiritual state God is concerned about our physical life, but scripture tells us to be concerned about the spiritual Page 2 of 5 When we are committed to the spiritual life, concern for the physical will be natural Paul had both the physical and the spiritual in mind when he wrote to the Philippians Php 2:28 I sent him therefore the more carefully, that, when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful. In verse 28, Paul brings his previous thoughts to a conclusion, a very careful conclusion His conclusion came through earnest consideration and diligent prayer He determined the best for all involved, THAT, WHEN YE SEE HIM AGAIN, YE MAY REJOICE Paul was always concerned about what the Christian was thinking, and their tongue was speaking He was concerned about the mind set and the hearts desire of the Christian, such as when he said, 1Th 5:16 Rejoice evermore. His command is for the Christian to “rejoice” at all-times, which sounds impossible How could Paul expect us to be continually filled with joy? We must realize that he did not say that we are to always be “happy” There is a difference between happiness and joy Christians will not be happy all-of the time, but Christians can be joyful all-of the time We are happy when the circumstances of life are just as we want them to be So, happiness is based upon the “happenings” of our life We are happy when everything goes the way that we have planned We are happy when life is good for us and people are pleasant toward us But that can quickly change in the path of life that we travel today People can quickly change, and circumstances can quickly change At any-time a Christian can and will experience sorrow or sickness, Christians can be unhappy But Paul says, Christian “rejoice evermore,” regardless of what happens or what the doctor says As Christians, we must learn that our “joy” is not based upon our circumstances of life Christian joy is not found within the circumstances we face in our life, our joy is in a person His name is Jesus, Jesus is the joy of our life, circumstances are without, Jesus is “within” We can “rejoice evermore” because Jesus is in our heart, within every beat of our heart We are going to find several verses in Philippians referring to joy and rejoicing “Rejoicing” is a message that we as Christians in our present day need to learn and live Paul had his times of sorrow or unhappiness, but he was always filled with the “Joy of Jesus” AND THAT I MAY BE THE LESS SORROWFUL “Less sorrowful” identifies with one of his times of unhappiness, we all have them But the question is, how do we handle them? Let’s consider how Paul handled the situation First of all, consider his concern, consider how concerned he was about others Paul was in prison because of his faithfulness to Christ, was he spending his time complaining? Was he having a “pitty party?” Was he blaming God for what had happened to him? Again, he is an example of what he had told the Philippians to do, Php 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Php 2:4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Paul considered the problems and pains of others important to him, even though he had problems If he was notified of a need within someone, he would immediately go to the Lord in prayer He practiced what he preached, 1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing. Seeking God’s leadership, asking God to show him what he could do to minister to others What do you do when you get a prayer request from someone? Do you remember how important prayer was when you had a great need for prayer? Page 3 of 5 Paul was not asking the Philippians to do something that he himself would not do Php 2:29 Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness; and hold such in reputation: “Receive him” has within it the thought of fellowship, which is Christian fellowship Christian Fellowship is “in the Lord,” Satan seeks to destroy the relationship of “in the Lord” We are to greet one another in the Lord, shake hands in the Lord, hug one another in the Lord WITH ALL GLADNESS The word “gladness” is normally translated “joy” and it expresses more than just “gladness” It is the “joy” that is of Jesus, the joy of Jesus is a supernatural experience The experience of a Spirit-filled life, the life known as the “Fruit of the Spirit” In Jesus it can be “all gladness,” which Paul said must be their way of receiving Epaphroditus AND HOLD SUCH IN REPUTATION Paul called upon the Philippians to do what all Christians should do toward one another We are not to belittle or downgrade our church family by words or action, by what we say or do Which happens too often today, we must recognize our reputation, realize who we are in Christ, 1Pe 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: We are God’s unique people, we are to honor Him, we honor God when we honor God’s people, 1Pe 2:17 Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king. To “honor people” means to put a value upon them, their soul was worth the cross for Jesus Honor starts at home, consider your family, Christians are your family, “the brotherhood” Keep on loving your brothers and sisters in Christ, all of them, not just a select few Desire the best for all, do the best you can for all, which is to love them with God’s love If Christians do not love each other, the lost will never see the love of God To “fear God” is to recognize who God really is, to recognize His authority To “fear God” is to live for God daily because of who He is To “fear God” is to live for God because of who we are in Christ We are to “honor the king,” the “king” represents government and the laws of our land We are to “honor the king” for the welfare of our country We are to “honor the king” as-long as we can still show reverence for God We are to obey the laws of the land with Godly reverence, which is obedience to God’s Word Every Christian has a reputation, what is yours? Epaphroditus had earned his Php 2:30 Because for the work of Christ he was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack of service toward me. Epaphroditus had almost lost his life because of his health problems Either his health problems were a result of his faithful service or he served through his sickness Either one had earned his reputation of one who was committed to “the work of Christ” We need Christians today who are not in volved in their selfish work but “the work of Christ” How involved was Epaphroditus in “the work of Christ?” HE WAS NIGH UNTO DEATH, NOT REGARDING HIS LIFE Jesus was first in his life, he lived for Christ, he would give his life serving Christ if necessary He came close to doing that, he almost died as a result of his service for the Lord He was doing what others were not able to do, he was willing to serve alone if necessary TO SUPPLY YOUR LACK OF SERVICE TOWARD ME Christians must be willing to step in and do what others are not able to do Page 4 of 5 CONCLUSION Today we recognize Memorial Day for our military, we need a “Christian Memorial Day” Honoring those of years past who faithfully served God and kept the doors of the church open They kept the doors of the church open even through difficult and trying times They were faithful to Christ even through times of physical sickness or handicap What memory are we going to leave, which is answered by our present life What do people think when they see us coming? Do we bring joy to the lives of others? Are we an encouragement to others? We need people like Epaphroditus in our church today The church of today needs Christians who are daily committed to Christ Who are faithful in church attendance, who know their church family and minister to them Christians who will say, “Lord, take my life and let it be what you want it to be today” Listen to the song Page 5 of 5