A community is a place where believers connect with each other on a soul level and in doing so, spur each other on to a deeper relationship with God. A community is more than just individual friendships; it is an atmosphere of deep relationships, a synergistic place where friends connect in grace and truth.
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 we believe he was, Paul was in Caesarea , then 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.
What’s so interesting about Epaphroditus is the way that Paul introduces him in verse 25. He calls him, “my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier.” These are fascinating words. Bible scholars point out that each word in the original Greek language holds deep meaning, each one deeper than the one before it. These descriptions build on each other, and so it appears that that Paul is using them intentionally. And each of these words serves as a great picture of how a community of Christ followers can grow deeper in Him.
The first word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is “brother.” It’s a favorite word of Paul’s. He often describes the people he is connected to as brothers. It was an inclusive word. Today, we would use the term brothers and sisters. A number of modern translations reflect the spirit of Paul’s tone here by doing exactly that, replacing “brothers” with “brothers and sisters.”
With this word, Paul is letting the Philippian Christians know that he has a connection with them that goes beyond the fact that they just happen to share the same faith in Jesus. They have a heart-connection with each other. They know each other. They have worshiped together and experienced God together.
If you were to put it into today’s context, your brothers and sisters are those fellow Christians with whom you see regularly. The people you worship with. It may be those in your Small Group. These are the people that make up the community that you are part of. When you think of the people in your church who you spend time with every week in the Presence of God, or those Christians perhaps in other places of the world that you keep in touch with, those are your brothers and sisters.
The second word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is “fellow worker.” Here, the connection goes to another level. Now it’s not simply about a personal connection on a faith level. This is about serving together. Paul and Epaphroditus didn’t just hang out together as friends, they worked together. They have served as partners in the mission that this has been powerful for Paul.
Epaphroditus was not content to just watch from the stands, he had to get onto the playing field. He’s in the game. And when Paul thinks about Epaphroditus, he can’t help but think of all they have accomplished and experienced together as they served God. Together, they have made a dent in the Kingdom of darkness and were used by God to make a difference. There is a sense of rich accomplishment and satisfaction in their relationship. “Epaphroditus, you are my fellow worker, my partner, my teammate.”
The final word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is an interesting one: “fellow soldier.” Here, Paul borrows some war imagery. He takes the fellow worker analogy and presses it even further. Paul thinks about how they went through the trenches together and how Epaphroditus was willing to sacrifice everything to make ministry happen. Even coming to see Paul was a huge risk, and he almost lost his life in the process.
It’s interesting to note how Paul even has some fun with Epaphroditus’ name at the end of this section. His name is taken from the god, Aphrodite, who was the favorite god of gamblers. In verse 30, Paul says that he almost died, “risking his life to make up for the help you couldn’t give.” The Greek word for “risk,” means literally, “to gamble.” You can almost see Paul smiling at his little joke as he talks about Epaphroditus “rolling the dice,” taking a long shot, in order to come help his friend in prison.
Epaphroditus’ thought was, “Paul needs help, so I’m going to go and help. That’s what friends do for each other. I’m going to go, no matter what happens to me. If I don’t make it, I don’t make it. But if I do, Paul gets blessed and the gospel gets out there.” As a fellow soldier, he laid down his life for Paul. It is an amazing illustration of true community.
This final description of Epaphroditus reminds us that at the center of healthy community is sacrifice. We are fellow soldiers fighting a battle and if we are going to be effective for God, we must be prepared to lay down our lives for one another. It’s one thing to like each other as brothers and sisters and feel a heart connection. It’s another thing to step out and serve together, working for God. But when we see ourselves as fellow soldiers, in the trenches together, our concept of community becomes that much deeper.
The challenge 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, Youth, or office. Assisting our ushers. Joining the Praise team. Serving with our 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!
Brothers and sisters. Fellow workers. 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.
If video doesn't show up below click here of watch in Browser: https://youtu.be/buhNp-8To2Y
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.
What’s so interesting about Epaphroditus is the way that Paul introduces him in verse 25. He calls him, “my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier.” These are fascinating words. Bible scholars point out that each word in the original Greek language holds deep meaning, each one deeper than the one before it. These descriptions build on each other, and so it appears that that Paul is using them intentionally. And each of these words serves as a great picture of how a community of Christ followers can grow deeper in Him.
The first word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is “brother.” It’s a favorite word of Paul’s. He often describes the people he is connected to as brothers. It was an inclusive word. Today, we would use the term brothers and sisters. A number of modern translations reflect the spirit of Paul’s tone here by doing exactly that, replacing “brothers” with “brothers and sisters.”
With this word, Paul is letting the Philippian Christians know that he has a connection with them that goes beyond the fact that they just happen to share the same faith in Jesus. They have a heart-connection with each other. They know each other. They have worshiped together and experienced God together.
If you were to put it into today’s context, your brothers and sisters are those fellow Christians with whom you see regularly. The people you worship with. It may be those in your Small Group. These are the people that make up the community that you are part of. When you think of the people in your church who you spend time with every week in the Presence of God, or those Christians perhaps in other places of the world that you keep in touch with, those are your brothers and sisters.
The second word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is “fellow worker.” Here, the connection goes to another level. Now it’s not simply about a personal connection on a faith level. This is about serving together. Paul and Epaphroditus didn’t just hang out together as friends, they worked together. They have served as partners in the mission that this has been powerful for Paul.
Epaphroditus was not content to just watch from the stands, he had to get onto the playing field. He’s in the game. And when Paul thinks about Epaphroditus, he can’t help but think of all they have accomplished and experienced together as they served God. Together, they have made a dent in the Kingdom of darkness and were used by God to make a difference. There is a sense of rich accomplishment and satisfaction in their relationship. “Epaphroditus, you are my fellow worker, my partner, my teammate.”
The final word that Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus is an interesting one: “fellow soldier.” Here, Paul borrows some war imagery. He takes the fellow worker analogy and presses it even further. Paul thinks about how they went through the trenches together and how Epaphroditus was willing to sacrifice everything to make ministry happen. Even coming to see Paul was a huge risk, and he almost lost his life in the process.
It’s interesting to note how Paul even has some fun with Epaphroditus’ name at the end of this section. His name is taken from the god, Aphrodite, who was the favorite god of gamblers. In verse 30, Paul says that he almost died, “risking his life to make up for the help you couldn’t give.” The Greek word for “risk,” means literally, “to gamble.” You can almost see Paul smiling at his little joke as he talks about Epaphroditus “rolling the dice,” taking a long shot, in order to come help his friend in prison.
Epaphroditus’ thought was, “Paul needs help, so I’m going to go and help. That’s what friends do for each other. I’m going to go, no matter what happens to me. If I don’t make it, I don’t make it. But if I do, Paul gets blessed and the gospel gets out there.” As a fellow soldier, he laid down his life for Paul. It is an amazing illustration of true community.
This final description of Epaphroditus reminds us that at the center of healthy community is sacrifice. We are fellow soldiers fighting a battle and if we are going to be effective for God, we must be prepared to lay down our lives for one another. It’s one thing to like each other as brothers and sisters and feel a heart connection. It’s another thing to step out and serve together, working for God. But when we see ourselves as fellow soldiers, in the trenches together, our concept of community becomes that much deeper.
The challenge 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, Youth, or office. Assisting our ushers. Joining the Praise team. Serving with our 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!
Brothers and sisters. Fellow workers. 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.
If video doesn't show up below click here of watch in Browser: https://youtu.be/buhNp-8To2Y
ACTION STEP: Find your herd. Be the brother or sister, fellow worker and soldier God has called you to be. Don't just eat at the table but get up and do the dishes, fight the good fight of faith. There is coming a time when it will be a life or death situation to be in a herd. The battle is being set up. Safety is in the family of God.
I believe in you and you need to believe in yourself.
I believe in you and you need to believe in yourself.
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