Philippians - Living for things that Last

There is joy in serving others. This is something the world just doesn't understand, but we who are Christians understand it because this is the way Jesus lived for us. And this is the way he wants to live in us and through us.

In the book of Philippians, Paul is talking about the joy of ministry. In Philippians 1, the joy of our message, which is Christ and the Gospel. Philippians 2, the joy of the model of our ministry, the Lord Jesus Christ. In Philippians 2:1-11, Paul lays down the principle that we must submit to the person above us, if there's going to be joy in our ministry. And here the example is the Lord Jesus Christ himself. And then in Philippians 2:12-16, we must surrender to the power within us.

Then in Philippians 2:17-30, Paul tells us that we must serve the people around us, starting right where we are, in our own home, our own community. There are multitudes of people who are burdened about folks overseas who wouldn't go across the street to help somebody else. We must serve the people around us. Philippians 2:17-30.

And he gives us here three examples to follow. The example of Paul himself in Philippians 2:17-18, then the example of Timothy in Philippians 2:19-24, and now in Philippians 2:25-30, he said, let me tell you about Epaphroditus. The name Epaphroditus means charming. And Epaphroditus is a very charming Christian, a very exemplary Christian, in at least three ways. He was a balanced Christian, and he was a burdened Christian, and he was a blessed Christian. He brought blessing to others. Epaphroditus was the messenger from the church at Philippi who made that long journey from Philippi to Rome to bring the Apostle Paul the goods that he needed. It was a dangerous journey, and as a result, Epaphroditus became ill. But God used Epaphroditus in a wonderful way. Philippians 2:25-30.

Yet I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and companion in labor and fellow soldier, but your messenger, and him that ministered to my need. For he longed after you all and was full of heaviness because you had heard that he had been sick. For indeed he was sick, near 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 the more eagerly, that when you see him again you 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 near unto death, not regarding his life to supply your lack of service toward me.

Well, there are three characteristics of Epaphroditus that to me make him a good example of the kind of Christians we ought to be as we serve one another. First of all, he was a balanced Christian. Notice the names that Paul uses in Philippians 2:25. My brother, my companion in labor, my fellow soldier.

Now, this refers us back to Philippians 1. You remember in Philippians 1 that we found three phrases that relate to the gospel. Philippians 1:5, for your fellowship in the gospel. Philippians 1:12, the furtherance of the gospel. And then Philippians 1:27, striving together for the faith of the gospel. Now, if you'll take those three phrases and put them right next to Philippians 2:25, you'll see the parallel. My brother, that is the fellowship of the gospel. And companion in labor, that is the furtherance of the gospel. And fellow soldier, that is the faith of the gospel. Epaphroditus was the kind of a person who was balanced.

Now, it's so easy in the Christian life to get out of balance. There are some people who only emphasize the fellowship of the gospel. My brother, my sister. Let's get together and have fellowship. Let's study our Bibles, let's pray. Now, these things are good. But I tell you, if you keep them to yourself, they're going to rot. The manna that was kept over rotted.

There are other people who are only concerned about service, service, the furtherance of the gospel. They have no time for fellowship, no time for worship. They want to be out passing out tracks and witnessing. And it's good to witness, and it's good to pass out tracks. But you don't do one to the exclusion of the other.

And then I find some people, all they want to do is fight. They're always out to defend the faith of the gospel. They're not concerned about worship or fellowship or building the church. They aren't concerned about reaching the lost. All they're doing is finding heresy and finding trouble, hither and yon, and pulling out the sword and fighting it. Oh, what we need today are balanced Christians. Not always enjoying fellowship, not always involved in furtherance, and not always involved in a fight, but balancing our lives so that we are doing a balanced work for the Lord.

Paul said he was your messenger. That word messenger is actually the word apostle. One who is sent with a commission. When your church gives you a job to do, you're under a commission. If it's the will of God for you to do it, you have a responsibility there. Your messenger and him that ministered to my need. And the word for ministered there is priestly minister.

Now, look at this fellow. Companion in labor, fellow soldier, brother, messenger, minister. What a wonderful man! Oh, if we had a dozen like him in every local church, we could turn the city upside down, couldn't we? Well, why don't you and I start becoming balanced Christians?

Beware of extremes, beware of riding hobbies, beware of neglecting your own personal walk with the Lord. Have a balanced diet of the word. Stay in fellowship with God's people. It'll keep you in balance. Epaphroditus was a good example because he was a balanced Christian.

Secondly, he was a burdened Christian. He longed after you all, says Philippians 2:26, and was full of heaviness. That word heaviness is the same word that was used of Christ's agony in the garden, Matthew 26:37. He was burdened. Now, why was he burdened? He was burdened because the people at Philippi were worried about him. That's interesting, isn't it? Somehow the word had gotten back that Epaphroditus had been very ill and had almost died. And the people at Philippi were concerned about him. And Epaphroditus was concerned because they were concerned.

He wasn't the kind of pampered Christian who said, oh, isn't it nice, all those people are concerned about me. He was burdened in a number of ways. Number one, he was burdened for his home church. That's Philippians 2:26. And he was also burdened for missions.

I don't know how Epaphroditus was chosen. He may have been an elder of the church or a deacon, I don't know. But at some point, the Philippian church took up this very special offering for Paul. They said, Paul has a need down there in Rome. Now, somebody has to take this to Rome. They couldn't write a check and send it through the computer. They couldn't go to a bank and get a money order.

Somebody had to walk and take a boat and do some more walking. A journey of what? Seven or eight, nine weeks from Philippi to Rome, a dangerous journey, a demanding journey. And at some point Epaphroditus said, I'm your man. He was burdened for Paul. He was burdened for missions.

Now, I don't know whether from Philippi to Rome is home missions or foreign missions. I don't see much difference, quite frankly. If we don't get more churches started in America, there won't be enough Christians to support the missionaries overseas. There's a desperate need at home and a desperate need overseas. So whether it was foreign missions or home missions, it's immaterial. It was missions.

Here was a man who was burdened for somebody else. Is your church ingrown? Are you thinking only of your building program and your youth program and your Christian education program and your Sunday school? Do you have any concern for others? Here was a man who was burdened for others, burdened for missions. He was burdened for his home church. He was concerned because they were worried about him. And he was willing to sacrifice and serve.

Now, those who say that dedicated Christian service protects you, have a problem with Epaphroditus. He was dedicated, he was consecrated, he was obedient, and he was sick. Oh, I know, I've heard the people who say, well, now, if you're living for the Lord, these things won't happen to you. They happened to Epaphroditus. He was almost in eternity.

Why didn't Paul heal him? Apparently it wasn't the will of God. It must be that God used normal means, natural means to bring him back to health again. I know Paul prayed. Certainly he prayed. But we have no record where Paul laid hands on him or anointed him and said, Epaphroditus, you are now well. No. This was a very normal, natural thing. He was a burdened Christian. He was willing to almost sacrifice his life for the cause of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Well, he was a balanced Christian, he was a burdened Christian, and he was a blessed Christian. Receive him therefore in the Lord. Always tie everything to the Lord. Receive him in the Lord with all gladness and hold such in reputation. That seems to be a contradiction to Philippians 2:7 where the Lord Jesus made himself of no reputation. Literally, he emptied himself. He laid aside his glory. But that's not what Philippians 2:29 means. To hold in reputation means to hold in high regard. It means to respect him. It means that he is held in high regard because of his service. There is nothing wrong with honoring God's servants as long as God gets the glory.

That's why Paul says, receive him therefore in the Lord. Don't just receive Epaphroditus, but receive him in the Lord and honor him. Nothing wrong at all with honoring God's servants who have been faithful to serve him.

Now, we don't want to do it to the point where God is divested of his glory. God is deprived of his glory. No. Paul puts it very beautifully in Philippians 2:30, "because for the work of Christ." Ah, that's the point. The work of Christ. He was near unto death, not regarding his life. There's sacrifice to supply your lack of service toward me. There's service.

All the way through Philippians 2, what do you find? Sacrifice and service, sacrifice and service. With the Lord Jesus, he came down in the form of a servant. And he humbled himself and became obedient unto death. Sacrifice and service. Look at the Apostle Paul, Philippians 2:17. Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith. Timothy, Philippians 2:22, he served with me in the gospel. And he was involved in sacrifice for the gospel. Now, we have Epaphroditus, sacrifice and service.

Wherever there is service, there has to be sacrifice. Otherwise, it's a vacation, not a vocation. Service that does not cost anything does not accomplish anything. And some of us who are in Christian ministry and many of you listening to me right now are serving the Lord faithfully. And there are days when we say, oh my, another sacrifice. Wait just a minute, for whom are we doing it?

Well, we're doing it for the Lord Jesus Christ. If you start serving and sacrificing for people, eventually you're going to quit because people don't deserve it and people don't appreciate it. If you're doing it for your own ego's sake, it won't last. But if you're doing it for Jesus' sake, oh, what a difference that makes.

Now, in Philippians 3, he gives us three very fundamental motives for Christian service. And this chapter divides itself into three very beautiful parts: Philippians 3:1-11, his righteousness. Philippians 3:12-16, his reward. And Philippians 3:17-21, his return.

Let me show you what Paul does in this chapter and then we'll look at Philippians 3:1-11 in detail. In Philippians 3:1-11, Paul takes us down to the bank and he talks about his new values. And one word is used several times: count. I count, I count. The Apostle Paul is measuring his priorities. He's weighing the things that really matter in his life. New values. Paul the accountant. I want his righteousness. That's Philippians 3:1-11.

In Philippians 3:12-16, Paul takes us out of the bank down to the stadium. As you know, the Greek people and the Roman people were quite taken up with sports, even as many people are today. And down at the stadium, the races were going on, either the running races or the chariot races. And in Philippians 3:12-16, you have Paul, not the accountant, but Paul the athlete. And he's running the race, or he's driving the chariot. And the keyword is not I count, but I press. He's not talking about new values now, he's talking about new vigor. I press. I have a goal that I'm going to reach.

Then in Philippians 3:17-21, the Apostle Paul takes us out of the stadium down to the city hall. And there we examine the records of the citizens. And here we have the Apostle Paul as an alien saying, my citizenship is in heaven. You'll remember now that the Philippians were Roman citizens away from Rome. They were a Roman colony. Their citizenship was in Rome even though their address was away from Rome.

And so says Paul about the Christian, we are the citizens of heaven, and we have a new vision. What is that vision? We're looking. Notice the three verbs now. Paul the accountant, I count. Paul the athlete, I press. Paul the alien, I look. I look for what? I look for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Here then are the three motives for Christian living and Christian service. His righteousness, Philippians 3:1-11, I count. His reward, Philippians 3:12-16, I press. And his return, Philippians 3:17-21, I look. Let's read together Philippians 3:1-11 now. I will make a few comments as we go along, and then we'll point out what Paul means by counting and by seeking the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. He's been saying this all through the letter, hasn't he? Rejoice in the Lord. Every chapter of Philippians begins with a phrase, in the Lord. You'll not get much out of this letter unless you can say, I am in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not irksome, but for you it is safe. Some people don't like repetition, but we need it.

Beware of dogs. Beware of evil workers. Beware of the concision or the mutilation. Now, who's he talking about here? He's talking about a group of people called the Judaizers. Wherever Paul went and won people to Christ, shortly afterward, this group would show up, these Judaizers, and would try to lead these people into the law. Paul wrote Galatians to refute their doctrine. He wrote 2 Corinthians to refute their practices.

We have this same legalistic crowd today. They say, now look, you cannot be saved or you cannot be spiritual unless, and they give you a long list of do's and don'ts. And Paul said, now, you beware of these people. They're like dogs. They've been yapping away at my heels. Wherever I go, they're barking, chasing me. And yet, you beware of them. They are evil workers. They won't make you spiritual.

And these Judaizers emphasized the law of Moses, especially circumcision. You see, Paul would go out and preach to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles had never had this experience of circumcision. And so these Judaizers would come along and say, oh, you cannot be saved, you can't go to heaven unless you submit to this Jewish ritual. Acts 15 records the contest, the conference that was held in Jerusalem about this very issue.

For we are the circumcision, we Christians, who worship God in the spirit. We don't depend on the flesh, and rejoice in Christ Jesus. That word rejoice means boast. We boast in Christ Jesus, not in Moses, or not in our own efforts or our own desires, our own accomplishments. We boast in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh.

Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinks that he has reasons for which he might trust in the flesh, I more. Now, Paul gives us his pedigree. Circumcised the eighth day. Of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews. As touching the law, a Pharisee. Concerning zeal, persecuting the church. Touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

That's quite a pedigree. He was not an Ishmaelite who was circumcised at the age of 13. He was not a proselyte. By birth, he was a Hebrew of the Hebrews. By choice, he was a Pharisee, and by zeal, he was one of the leading Pharisees.

Now, Philippians 3:7, but that's a good word. But what things were gained to me, those I counted lost for Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, garbage, that I may win Christ and be found in him. 164 times in Paul's letters you find that phrase, in him. Be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law. But that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith, that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death. If by any means I might attain unto or arrive at the resurrection of the dead.

That I might be found in him. That's justification. That I might know him. That's sanctification.

Well, Paul is telling us here what he had written down in his journal. It's sort of a a slice of his life, isn't it? And he's saying to us, the motive for my ministry used to be my righteousness. I was a zealous Pharisee. I persecuted the church. I tried to get people to denounce the Lord. When you measured me by the law, I was blameless. Now, he didn't say he was sinless, but he was blameless. And yet, says Paul, when I found Jesus Christ as my savior, and he found me, when he saved me, everything changed.

You see, the emphasis here is on character. One of our motives for ministry is that we might receive and reveal his righteousness. Now, I'm going to make a statement that's going to shock some of you, but you think it through. God is more concerned about the worker than he is the work. I want to repeat that now. God is more concerned about the worker than he is the work. He will spend years making a worker, and then that worker will spend a few years doing the work.

The Apostle Paul said, I came to the point where I realized that in Jesus Christ is all the righteousness that I need, and my goal is not my reputation. You see, Philippians 3:4-6, you have Paul's reputation. My, what a press release he could write. My, what an interview he could give on public radio. He had everything anybody could want: morality, position, pedigree. Everything was going for the Apostle Paul when he was Saul of Tarsus, the rabbi.

But you know, he was more concerned about his reputation than he was his character. All the while he thought he was serving God, and he wasn't serving God. He was actually serving Satan, and he was fighting God. And then he met Jesus Christ, and his priorities changed.

He says, I have no confidence in the flesh. My birth doesn't mean a thing to me. My pedigree, my heritage, doesn't mean a thing to me. It's not the flesh, it's the spirit. It's not self-confidence, it's Christ confidence. It's not the external rituals of religion, it's the internal experience of Jesus Christ. It's not the praise of men, rather it is the glory of God.

If our motive is his righteousness, then we are daily going to become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't trust in the flesh, yield to the Holy Spirit. And let the Spirit of God gradually make you like the Son of God. Oh, if you don't have joy in your ministry today, examine your motives. Are you living for the cheap things that aren't going to last, or are you living for those things that really count to the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ?