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Humble and Honorable

Sunday, May 14, 2023
Pastor Jojo Ma

Weekly Bulletin | Worship Lyrics

Philippians 2:25-30

 

25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

“I’m not afraid of failure; I’m afraid of succeeding at things that don’t matter.”

“To know the will of God, we need an open Bible and an open map.”

“Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God.”

I.          Epaphroditus: Messenger and Minister [v25]
II.        Epaphroditus: Sick and Selfless [vv26-27]
III.       Epaphroditus: Humble and Honorable [vv28-30]

I.         Epaphroditus: Messenger and Minister [v25]
25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.

Phil 4:18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.

Our spiritual bloodline is deeper than any other earthly or physical bloodline because it flows from our Savior’s love for us, from his own veins.

If you are a Christian, you have been saved to serve. You have not been saved to primarily be served.

The more you work for the Lord, the more you do His will, the more you will experience spiritual warfare for the Lord’s cause.

Workers are also warriors, servants are also soldiers. And we have to keep the battle on the front lines doing the work of evangelism and discipleship and missions and bible-teaching and prayer and loving one another and doing good deeds and growing in holiness. This is all part of what it means to be a fellow “soldier”.

If you are a Christian, you have been sent by God, you are a messenger for Him, to use your life and your lips as a blessing, as an encouragement, and to care for others, and also as one who brings good news to the lost.

Phil 4:18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

II.        Epaphroditus: Sick and Selfless [vv26-27]
26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.

Peter T O’Brien: “This was a direct healing from God, the sovereign merciful act of God Himself.”

27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.

For the sake of the gospel, are we willing to take risks to personal health and safety and comforts and conveniences? Do you have a limit, a line drawn, to what you are willing to do or where you are willing to go, for the advancement of the gospel?

Phil 2:3-4 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

26 for [Epaphroditus] has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill.

Would we feel this way for one another here at CrossLife? As we link arms together, would we have a deep love for one another? As we serve with our hands together, would our hearts be knit together, to feel for one another, and to care for one another?

III.      Epaphroditus: Humble and Honorable [vv28-30]
28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

Don’t miss that paradox. He is to be lifted up because he is lowly. That is how it works in God’s economy. God exalts the lowly and brings down the lofty.

Am I placing the interests of others above my own? Am I willing to risk everything for the sake of Christ and his kingdom, including health and safety? Am I lowly and humble and willing to do whatever the Lord asks of me?