Well, last week we finished our
meditation on verse 21. So this evening we'll just read
again from verse 22 to the end to verse 30. But you know the
proof of him that as a son of the Father he has served with
me in the gospel. Him therefore I hope to send
presently so soon as I shall see how it will go with me. But
I trust in the Lord that I also, myself, shall come shortly. Yet
I supposed it necessary to send to you, Epaphroditus, my brother
and companion in labor, and fellow soldier, but your messenger,
and he that ministered to my wants. For he longed after you
all, and was full of heaviness, because ye had heard that he
had been sick, 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. I sent him, therefore, that more
carefully, that when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that
I may be the less sorrowful. Receive him, therefore, in the
Lord, with all gladness, and hold such in reputation. because for the work of Christ
he was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack
of service toward me." Well it's very wonderful and
very lovely really to read of the Apostle Paul's concern for
the church at Philippi and of course we must realise that this
church was a relatively young church. It was seen when the
Apostle was told to go over into Macedonia. There was no church
and perhaps it was one that was formed at that time and then
perhaps there were others. But nonetheless, here was the
Apostle's concern for the Church of God And obviously the concern
that they might be fed spiritually. And as we considered last week,
he said, I trust in the Lord Jesus who sent Timotheus shortly
unto you, that I also may be of good comfort when I know your
state. He needed to know how they fared
spiritually. And so he wanted Timotheus to
go and to tell him what the condition was. And he says, for I have
no man like-minded who will naturally care for your state. It's good,
isn't it, when we know there are God's servants who care for
the state of the church, who are concerned for the health
of the church. And he tells us, for all seek
their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. And I suppose
that's very evident today, isn't it? So many people are concerned
about their own things and not concerned about the things which
are Christ's, those spiritual things. They fail to put first
things first. And yet we know in the Apostle's
life how constantly, by the grace of God, he was able to do that
and wanted to do it. He realized the blessing there
was to know and to hear of Christ and nothing hindered him and
stopped him from this great desire. And so he says, but you know
the proof of him that as a son with a father he has served me
in the gospel. Clearly he was called to preach
the gospel, clearly he did preach the gospel and so he was as we
know a son, a son in the faith of the Apostle Paul. That's why
the Apostle was able to address the Philippians likeness that
as a son with a father he hath served me in the gospel and then
he says him therefore I hope to send presently so soon as
I shall see how it will go with me." Remembering of course he
was in prison here in Philippi and not knowing really what the
condition would be, how much freedom he would have and therefore
his concern was and told to the Lord, he trusted in the Lord
that he also The Apostle would be able to come shortly to those
at Philippi. Nonetheless, he still wanted
to send Timotheus, and then we're told also, yet I suppose it necessary
to send to you Epaphroditus. He tells us who Epaphroditus
was. He was my brother. And we would
assume that meant brother in the Lord, not a physical brother. My brother and companion in labour,
in preaching the gospel, he laboured in the gospel, and fellow soldier,
indeed the whole Church of God, are in this time of warfare as
we battle on through life with the great adversary, the devil.
Therefore we are really all on this path and we are all fellow
soldiers. But he also says, but your messenger,
the one who brings the glorious news of the gospel and he that
ministered to my want. So not only was that a spiritual
blessing, but also he'd been very useful in ministering to
the wants of the Apostle Paul. Of course, remember, Paul was
here in Rome, many, many miles, you might say, from his homeland,
and therefore there may not have been very many with him to minister
to his natural wants, and also perhaps to his spiritual needs. We're told here that Patroditus
was a person that the Lord had raised up to do this for him. And yet, the apostle knew something
of the workings in the heart of Epaphroditus. And so he tells
them, the Philippians, for he longed after you all. Longed
after them to go and to be able to preach the Gospel to them. That was his great desire and
great concern to tell them of the Saviour. Tell them of the
Saviour's love and the Saviour's mercy and the Saviour's grace. He longed after you all. It's
a great blessing, isn't it, when God's servants long to be able
to preach the everlasting gospel, that it may be made a true blessing
to the heroes. And he goes on and says, and
he was full of heaviness, because that he had heard, that ye had
heard that he had been sick. He didn't want them to be downcast. He didn't want them to think
perhaps that they wouldn't have an opportunity to hear him again,
and especially as what the Apostle says, for indeed he was sick,
nigh to death, and by that it's very clear he was near to dying. And yet, but God had mercy on
him. What a blessing it is when God
has mercy on his servants and raises them up. We have of course
Tim Parrish who was obviously near to death and God was gracious
and had mercy on him and as the Apostle says and not on him only
but on me also. How wonderful it is to realize
how merciful and gracious God is and what a blessing it is
to be able to record such statements as this. And the Apostle says,
lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. You see, we read about
the Apostle Paul, we read about wonderful blessings he had, but
also, of course, the Apostle didn't have an easy path. He
was indeed a soldier. He had much warfare. He had much
opposition. Much sorrow. And therefore he
says, The Lord was gracious. He didn't take Epaphroditus from
him, but he was gracious. What a blessing it is to know
still today, our God is gracious and our God hears prayer to this
end. Lest I should have sorrow upon
sorrow. I sent him therefore, but more
carefully, that when you see him again, ye may rejoice. and that I may be the less sorrowful. It is important to note the desire
the Apostle had about rejoicing. He read it together this evening,
and the 16th verse, which we didn't read, says, Holy of fourth,
the word of life, that I may rejoice in the day of Christ,
that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain, yea,
and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your
faith, I joy and rejoice with you all. The Lord is gracious
and he does give us cause to rejoice and we should rejoice. The Lord blesses us with those
favours and mercies so that we are able to be thankful and to
rejoice that he has not left us And he hasn't dealt with us
as our sins deserve. But there's time again and again
to rejoice. When you see him again, you may
rejoice and I may be the less sorrowful. And so he says, receive
him therefore in the Lord. That's a great blessing, isn't
it? To be received in the Lord as
a servant of the Lord, as a federal labourer, in the Lord. That's
how Epaphroditus was to be received by the Philippians. Receive him
therefore in the Lord with all gladness. That's good, isn't
it, when the church of God are glad to receive God's servants,
to hear the gospel preached and to hold such in reputation. To hold them, hold them up. and to recognize they are God's
servants, and to thank God for them, and to desire that God
may use them for their souls' eternal good, that they may be
indeed the Lord's messenger in the Lord's message, and hold
such in reputation. We can recognize this as being
written to the Philippians, but we can recognize it also as being
written to the Church of God today. And he goes on, because
for the work of Christ, he was nigh unto death. It would appear
that he was serving God, and in that position, he was near
unto death. You might think perhaps of that
with present day COVID. There's that possibility, it
has been much greater, in fact it's not apparently so great
now, because for the work of Christ, he was nigh unto death,
not regarding his life, didn't count his life dear. The great
privilege was to preach the gospel, and therefore, Epaphroditus was
found in this state, not regarding his life, to supply your lack
of service toward me." Well, we see the goodness of God set
forth to these two men, to Motheus and to Epaphroditus, and Paul's
desire that they might go to the Philippians, and in due time
he might also go, so that the Philippians might be blessed
through the ministry of the Gospel. Well, may our desire be that
people may be blessed through the ministry of the gospel, that
Christ might be lifted up and that wonderful truth found to
be gloriously true, and I, if I be lifted up from the earth,
will draw all men unto me. Amen.