Philippians 2:19-30 - Mark Ralf
Philippians 2:19-30
In the film clip we saw a hero in action.
The hero who does the brave thing, the right thing at the right time and saves the day.
How do you we become a hero?
Do you fancy this job?
Wanted! LEADER
Huge amounts of travel with no expenses.
Must work harder than any team member.
Imprisonment, beatings and floggings part of the role.
Exposure to possible death repeatedly.
Multiple shipwreck, bandits and other constant dangers.
Sleep deprivation, starvation, thirst and cold all part of the job.
Low pay, long hours, intense opposition.
Apply within....
What about this one?
Wanted! FOLLOWER
Understudy for well-travelled, soon to retire missionary.
Must be able to suffer hardship; to teach and be taught; to evangelise, organise and perform a variety of vital church functions. Low pay, long hours, intense opposition.
Interested applicants must cope with demanding boss.
Apply within….
Last one…
Wanted! A NOBODY
Must serve in an unknown capacity.
Hard work guaranteed – away from home and friends
Unlikely to be heard of again.
Hardship and suffering certain.
Severe illness likely and may prove fatal.
You are likely to be appreciated only by those you serve.
Apply within….
Do we fancy any of these jobs?
It’s unlikely isn’t it?
In our passage today we see three people who have very different roles. A leader, a follower and a nobody. And yet all three can teach us a huge amount.
Firstly Paul.
In other places Paul stands on his dignity as an apostle. (Romans 11:13) but not here.
In verse 22 Paul chooses to talk about his relationship with Timothy as a father and son.
Paul was the leader and Timothy the subordinate. He doesn’t say “I am an apostle, he served me well.”
What does he say?........
“He has served with me in the gospel.” These are not the words of the boss or leader but the co-worker, co-slave.
Paul served the Lord Jesus with an attitude of obedience.
· He was submissive to the way the Lord was ordering his life – in verse 19 he put his hope in the Lord Jesus regarding Timothy’s mission.
· Regarding whether Paul lives or dies. Whether he is free or stays a prisoner –he is resigned to God’s over-ruling.
He is not trusting in Roman law or his position as a Roman citizen.
Are we like that?
Do we trust God to order our lives? Do we allow God to rule?
Or do we trust in ourselves?
My brother is having a tough time at the moment. He always comes to me to help him out.
But there is little that I can do this time except support him as a brother and a friend.
Quite often I trust in my own ability to fix things and then wonder why God doesn’t appear to do much in my life. I’m not letting him in.
Paul says “I hope in the Lord…” What do you hope in?
Next we look at Timothy (you can count on Timothy)
Of Timothy, Paul says in verse 20, “I have no one like him, who is genuinely anxious for your welfare – the welfare of the Philippians. Timothy shared the concerns of Paul about the church in
Timothy is not obsessed with his own interests – like everyone else. At first glance verse 21 might seem a bit harsh. But how many of us who call ourselves Christians would be willing to leave our comfortable homes and go visiting to
Most of us would find some excuse and “look after our own interests, rather than the interests of Jesus Christ.”
Paul implies here that we have a duty to make the work of Jesus Christ the most significant object of our lives.
Most of us live for their own ease, for our families, our homes, our businesses – rather than God’s will.
The number one qualification for the job of disciple in Timothy’s day, and our day, is willingness -
Willingness to learn, to obey and to serve.
Timothy demonstrated his willingness to do God’s will rather than follow his own will.
On remembrance Sunday we think of people who gave their lives in wars, defending their country and supporting their nation. Most went willingly even though many knew they would not come back. They were willing and they paid a terrible price to serve their king or queen.
Timothy earns the praise from Paul “as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel”.
So Paul the leader teaches us “to hope in the Lord Jesus”
Timothy the follower teaches us to “be willing to obey and serve the Lord Jesus”
What about Epaphroditus?
Who?
Epaphroditus is a nobody.
We only see his name in verse 25 and again in Chapter 4:18 where Paul acknowledges that Epaphroditus brought the gift from the church at
He is the nobody in our job advert.
Apart from being respected and cared about by his home church and being appreciated by Paul we never hear from him again.
So what does Paul say about him?
In v25, Paul calls him my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier and your messenger and minister to my need.
This nobody is called my brother by Paul. Epaphroditus is a gentile. Once upon a time, Paul as a proud Pharisee would have thought of him as a gentile dog. Now Paul thinks of him as part of the family. Paul as father, Timothy as son and Epaphroditus as brother.
Are we happy to do the invisible tasks for the Lord Jesus?
I know that I am very busy and I rush around. At home, at work and at church. So amongst all my rushing around being very busy I quite often fail to notice all the invisible tasks that everyone else is just getting on with. Quite often people faithfully do a job for years and no one appears to notice. Brian and Elva, for example, are great at encouraging us and thanking people for the work they are doing.
Epaphroditus almost died either getting to Paul or while he was there. Epaphroditus’ concern was not for himself but he was concerned because those back home in his church were worried about him but didn’t know he had now recovered.
Wouldn’t it be a wonderful reputation if Christ Church Ewell was known for how it cared and showed its concern for one another.
· We can all take part in that,
· looking after and praying for one another
· and in order to pray we need to know about one another.
· So we need to spend time together sharing our concerns and hopes.
Paul says in verse 29, “receive him in the Lord with all joy…. And honour such men!....
For he nearly died for the work of Christ; risking his life to complete your service to me.”
Epaphroditus literally gambled with his life for the gospel
And Paul says “Honour such men” – not bad for a nobody!
Epaphroditus teaches us to be a fellow worker and fellow soldier – working alongside to get the job done – invisibly not for the glory. Epaphroditus is the unsung hero.
Paul asks Epaphroditus to carry back this letter to the Philippians – a letter all about dissention in the church. What better person to carry back the letter but someone who will be a great role model – an unsung hero – in front of them.
Paul, the leader, teaches us “to hope in the Lord Jesus”
Timothy, the follower, teaches us to “be willing to obey and serve the Lord Jesus”
Epaphroditus, the unsung hero, teaches us to work alongside others, invisibly serving the interests of Jesus Christ.
posted by Mark Ralf @ Sunday, November 09, 2003
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