Drew Boswell

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“Introductions to the Unknown God” Acts 17:22-34

“A Summer Journey;

Following the Apostle Paul Through His Missionary Journeys”

A Sermon Series

“Introductions to the Unknown God”

Acts 17:22-34

Introduction

On Paul’s second missionary journey we follow him into the city of Athens. Escaping from Thessalonica and Berea, he is awaiting his fellow missionaries (Timothy and Silas). He is making his way through the city.

“As a Hellenized Jew, Paul had been exposed to Greek culture with its outstanding traditions in art and philosophy. Athens was the center of that culture. In its heyday, several centuries before Christ, it had been the greatest city in the world. Socrates, his brilliant student Plato, and Plato’s student Aristotle, perhaps the greatest philosopher of all time, taught there.”[1]

Along with this rich academic culture, Athens was also a religious center, where almost every god thought to exist was worshipped. A pagan writer named Petronius sarcastically said that it was easier to find a god in Athens than a man. Every public building was dedicated to god, and statues of gods were everywhere. So, while Paul is waiting, he begins to go into the Jewish synagogues and explaining how Jesus was the Messiah. The Jewish people, in their jealousy, bring Paul before the Roman authorities there in Athens, and there the Roman leaders ask him what he is teaching,

Acts 17:19-21 “And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20 For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” 21 Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.”

Understanding That God Is (vv. 22-26)

22 So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.[2] 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” The Bible intent is not prove that God exists, there also is no scientific experiment or mathematical equations you can do to prove God exists – however it does say things like:

Psalm 19:1 “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.”

Romans 1:19-20 “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.”[3]

Theologians call this the cosmological argument (cause and effect) – everything comes from something (a cause), and if you go back far enough there is an original cause (God as creator). Hebrews 3:4 “For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.”[4]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilgdFvit49Y

Paul points out one of their alters, “with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’” “Their thinking was that if the gods were nor properly venerated they would strike the city. Hence, lest they inadvertently invoke the wrath of some god in their ignorance of him or her, the city set up these alters to unknown gods (Diogenes 1.110-113).”[5] Paul then says, “You don’t know this God, but I do, and I would like to tell you about this God.

By saying, “What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you,” Paul is not saying that God accepted this worship; the emphasis is on the ignorance, not the worship.[6] “You have been worshipping a god that you do not know” – There has to be a knowledge of God, a personal relationship with Him before our worship can ever be accepted by God. That knowledge of God comes through our relationship with Jesus Christ.

Later on, there will people who see Paul’s miracles and try to do the things they saw Paul doing, but it is separate from a relationship with God. They try to use the name of Jesus apart from a relationship with Jesus – Acts 19:13-16 “Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” 14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” 16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”

Even the demons knew that they were not followers of Jesus. The Athenians admit they don’t know this god, it’s in the title “unknown god,” built the alter to the unknown god because they did not want this God’s fury – but it is their lack of knowing Him, that will in the end bring judgement upon them.

Understanding God begins with a belief that a God exists, but then we have to ask “What is He like?” It is the tendency of all of humanity, that once we believe there is a God, to then make him into our own image – We think to ourselves, god is like me. So we mold him and craft him to be what we want him to be like – we call this idolatry. So, Paul then goes on to explain what God is like:

 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. 26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,

The God that Paul is talking about created everything that exists (including the heaven and the earth). He is all powerful and does not need anything (He is completely self-sufficient). We need God to give us breath and life, and it was God who gave us our original source of being (Adam). Our lives of breath have also been allotted out and measured by this unknown God – He determines when you are born, where you are born, to whom you are born, and how many breaths you will take on this earth.

A source of pride by the Athenians was that they were above everyone, and everyone else were barbarians. “All men are equal, because all were created by God.”[7] “The unity of the human race as descended from Adam is fundamental in Paul theology, (Rom. 5:12).”[8] We are equal before God, and we are equal in that we are all sinners.

What is this unknown God like? He creates, he sustains His creation, He is all powerful, He is gives purpose (allotted times, boundaries, dwelling places, etc.) You were born into this world for “such a time as this,” you are given boundaries and purpose. God gives you life and breath “and everything” for a purpose, and your time here is measured. You are not to make your own path, you are not your own creation – Your Creator has intentionally put a path before you. When you meet this unknown God, you discover your life’s purpose.

Understanding Who Go Is (vv. 27-29)

27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28 for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ 29 Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.

Our life’s purpose is to have a relationship with God. (v. 27) “that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him,” This is a picture of “the blind groping of the darkened heathen mind after God to “find him” whom they had lost. One knows what it is in a darkened room to fell along the walls for the door.”[9] Each of the 30,000 statues of gods, and hundreds of temples to gods, all here man’s attempt to find god. But God is not far off from any person, “he is actually not far from each one of us.”

Realizing, through natural revelation, that there is a God, and this God has reached out to humanity and desires to have a relationship with them. Even the Athenian poets recognized this truth, “For we are indeed his offspring.”

(v. 28) Paul quotes a saying of their day, “In him we live and move and have our being’” – In a godless society people are taught that the beginning of time was meaningless (just a cosmic chaos of elements swirling into something existing), and that time ends in eternal nothingness (elements decaying into the earth).

According to the godless world view, we start and end in meaninglessness. What Paul is telling the world is that life is rooted and grounded in God.[10] You live because of God, your path is laid out before you because of God, and your very being (existence) is because of God – and that all-powerful God wants a relationship with you.

Without the light of Jesus, humanity groped along in spiritual darkness and came up with all kinds of false gods – but now that Jesus has arrived, He is the light of the world – Jesus allows us to see who God truly is, what God is like, and how to have a relationship with Him.

Understanding What God Has Said (vv. 30-31)

30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but know he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

If a person observes nature around him and comes to the understanding that there is a creator God (a first cause). This is not enough to lead to a saving knowledge of God. God has to reveal himself to the world – and He has done this through Jesus Christ. When Jesus came, it marked a change in how God deals with mankind. Based on the revelation of Jesus to humanity, we must repent of our sin and put our faith in Him.

John 5:22, 27 “For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. . . 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.”

“Something changed dramatically in the course of human history, something that is not just for the Jews but for Athenians, Romans, and Philippians and every person in the world. Now God commands all men everywhere to repent.”[11]

Why the change now that Jesus has been revealed? “because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world.” – Judgement Day is approaching. To prove that Jesus is the one who will ultimately judge the world based on God’s standard of righteousness, Jesus was raised from the dead.

The knowledge that is revealed through creation, then further explained through the revelation of Jesus, requires a decision – there is always a call to do something with Jesus. What you do with Jesus ultimately determines where we will live, where we move, and where we will have our being.

Understanding That All Have a Decision to Make (vv. 32-34)

32 Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.” 33 So Paul went out from their midst. 34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Paul standing amongst all the temples and statues and buildings dedicated to false gods, says, “there is but one God, He has sent His Son to save the world from their sins, and He will return on an appointed day to judge the world based on His standard of righteousness. Do you want to know him?”

When Paul had finished his sermon, there were three responses. One group was fine with novel and new thought, but when it arrived at the resurrection from the dead, they mocked. The second group said. “We will hear you again about this.”. That’s enough truth for one day.” Which is the person who hears the sermon but doesn’t do anything with it. And there were some who believed and even joined them in the missionary journey. They now know the unknown God. Would you like to meet Him today?

___________________

[1] John MacArthur, Macarthur New Testament Commentary Series, Acts (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Publishers, 1996) 129.

[2] Capitatio benevolentiae – a rhetorical technique used in an effort to win the favor of his hearers and thus secure their attention at the beginning of a speech.

[3] Sensus divinatatus – within every person is a knowledge that there is a God (while we may try to suppress it).

[4] This is called the teleological argument; the order and complexity of the universe could not have arisen out of random chance. The house has to have a builder.

[5] Ajith Fernando, The NIV Application Commentary, Acts (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1998) 475.

[6] Fernando, 480.

[7] MacArthur, 140.

[8] F. F. Bruce, The Acts of the Apostles, The Greek Text With Introduction and Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan; WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979) 337.

[9] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures In The New Testament, Volume III (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 288.

[10] R.C. Sproul, Acts, An Expositional Commentary (Sanford, Florida; Ligonier Ministries, 2019) 279.

[11] Sproul, 281.

“The Church that Sets Apart and the God Who Sends Them Out” Acts 13:1-13; The First Missionary Journey, Part One

“A Summer Journey;

Following the Apostle Paul Through His Missionary Journeys”

A Sermon Series

“The Church that Sets Apart and the God Who Sends Them Out”

Acts 13:1-13; The First Missionary Journey, Part One

Introduction

When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.” To that, Calvert replied, “We died before we came here.” Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”

Prayer

A Church with A Heart to Share the Gospel (vv. 1- 4)

“Now there were in the church at Antioch[1] prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”

It is the church at Antioch that prays and fasts, lays hands on them, and it is the church that sends out those set apart and called by God. The church fasted and prayed to make sure they were hearing rightly, acting appropriately, and that their hearts were right in how they sent them out. Paul and Barnabas leave and return to the local church. And when they return they give a report of all that God did while they were away.

Missions begins with the prompting of God, submitting by called missionaries, and are supported and sent by the local church. In this passage, “for the first time a local church was led to see the need for witness beyond them to the larger world and commissioned missionaries to carry out that task.”[2] The witness to the (Acts 1:8 ) “ends of the earth,” begins.

Typically, when we think of the first mission trip in the history of the church, we think that Paul was the main leader – but it actually seems to be Barnabas (whose name is mentioned first on two occasions) who recruits his cousin (Col. 4:10) John Mark, and Paul begins his first missionary journey nine years after his conversion on the road to Damascus.

Barnabas, the mature Christian, spoke up for Paul earlier in Acts 9:26-30 “And when he (Paul) had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.”

The church can set apart people for ministry, and recognize a calling upon a person’s life by laying hands on them, but unless they have the sending out power of the Holy Spirit, the ministry task they seek to do will be in vain. Set apart and sent out by the Holy Spirit – recognized and supported by the local church.

Barnabas and Saul Sharing the Gospel at Cyprus (vv. 5-12)

“5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. 6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.

 Review the map

Paul’s missionary strategy was to go to the Jewish synagogues and preach – at Cyprus as they preach the gospel, a proconsul named Sergius Paulus wanted to hear what they were saying, so he summons them. Often, rulers would consult with fortune tellers and magicians to predict weather, battles, etc. So there, among those surrounding the proconsul, was a Jewish magician named Bar-Jesus (ironically meaning son of Jesus).

“As Paul was trying to give the word of God to the proconsul, he was interrupted by this false prophet who was doing everything he could to impede the presentation of the gospel and prevent the proconsul from having a favorable response to it.”[3]

If the proconsul learned about the one true God, how Jesus could save him from his sins, and how a person could have direct access to God – they could talk to God themselves, pray to God themselves, have access to God themselves – eliminating the need for a go-between (i.e. goodbye false prophet magician).

There Are People Who Don’t Want Others to Know About Jesus

Because of How It Would Affect Them,

So They Will Work Against The Work of the Church.

9 But Saul, who was also called Paul[4], filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”

Paul’s response, guided by the Holy Spirit, is direct, aggressive, and he calls out evil for what it is, even adding a physical consequence to the sin (blindness). The fortuneteller who supposedly could see the future, now could not see anything right in front of him and had to be led around.

(v. 9) Saul is his Hebrew name, and Paul is his Roman name.[5] There is a transition that happens here; from this point forward he is called Paul (and up to this point he was called Saul). He is so enraged at this supposed Jew false prophet’s resistance to the world receiving the gospel that Paul becomes the leader in the effort, and now he is identified with the Gentile world (his Roman name).

Luke, the author, lets us know that this is the point where a calling from God became Paul’s life’s mission – to reach the Gentiles with the gospel. A calling upon a man’s life changes everything about him – it gives his life focus, it becomes who he is; his whole world in consumed with it.

 I was called into ministry when I was twenty-one years old. I went to seminary for four years, and eventually served in my first church in Maryland. All of which required that I was away from my Alabama home. Over that course of time my grandfather, who I was fairly close to, began to lose his memory. Over the years at Thanksgiving, Christmas and vacation trips, He slowly forgot who I was. Eventually in his later years he would be at my parent’s house, where we would be visiting, and he would turn to me, having forget all the years of me spending weeks of the summer at his home, or building things together, etc. and he would look deeply at me and call me, preacher. The only memory left of me, preacher.

Note that what astonished the proconsul wasn’t the judgement that fell on Bar-Jesus, it was the “teaching of the Lord,” It was the truth of the gospel proclaimed by Paul and Barnabas. Miracles in the New Testament are there to authenticate God’s true agents of revelation. Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leaders came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him” (John 3:2). The proconsul’s response to the miracle was to believe the words of the missionaries.

(v. 12) “Then the proconsul believed,” – What was it that he believed? He was a Gentile and would not have the foundational knowledge of the OT (there were no dots to connect), he was not keeping the law, he had not been circumcised. So how does he come to place his faith and believe in Jesus as a Gentile and be truly saved? When Paul goes back and reports all that they have seen God do on this missions trip, this causes the need for a church counsel in Jerusalem (Acts 15).

Paul and Barnabas Sharing the Gospel at Antioch in Pisidia (vv. 13-45)

13 Now Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John left them and returned to Jerusalem,

The text doesn’t explain why John Mark left them to return to Jerusalem, but later in the book John Mark wants to rejoin the effort, and Paul says, no.” Acts 15:36-39 “And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” 37 Now Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39 And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other.”[6]

It seems that there was a leadership change, where Paul took the main leadership role, and Barnabas moved to the second in command, John Mark didn’t like it, so he left – or when they landed on the shore at Perga something really scared him (they would face severe resistance there). Or it may have been John Mark was a part of the group from what chapter 15:1 who would say, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” The salvation of one man led Saul to become Paul and it drove another man to abandon the work entirely.

 it was an abandonment in the work. John Mark chose his reason over the work of getting the gospel out and it was a blow to the missionary group. John Mark weighed his options and decided to leave.

 Everyone must choose what will have priority in your life: 1) your own self-comfort, safety, personal life goals, personal doctrinal beliefs 2) or the work of the gospel and the salvation of others.

_____________________

[1] Followers of Jesus were first called Christians Acts 11:26.

[2] John B. Pohill, The New American Commentary, Acts (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1992) 288.

[3] R. C. Sproul, Acts: An Expositional Commentary (Stanford Florida; Ligonier Ministries, 2019) 191.

[4] (v. 9) after this verse, Saul is called Paul for the rest of the book.

[5] Paul was his Roman cognomen.

[6] Twenty years later in 2 Timothy 4:11 Paul specifically requests John Mark’s assistance; so by then he has proven himself to be a faithful servant of the Lord, even if earlier in his life he left the team.

Building a Chair With Don Weber

Most educational endeavors typically follow a predictable course. First the student assumes they know a considerable amount about a subject because they have read books or have some experience around a subject. They say, “sure I can cook a soufflé’ because I ate one, one time, at a restaurant when I was twenty.” Then they actually begin the process of attempting to do something they thought they could do, only to realize they have no idea what they are doing. Then after continued effort and mistakes they reach the point of complete frustration and they quit — having realized the huge volume of things they need to know, yet do not know. Then the student keeps trying and makes some forward movement but the product is crude, primitive, clunky, and skewed. Finally, the student completes the task – not so much proud of the finished product, but that they have learned the steps and knowledge of how it is supposed to be done.

The end product (in my case a chair) is a monument of someone attempting something difficult, having learned some new skills, and having brought something new into the world (it could any creative thing from a painting, a cake, or leather shoes, etc.). The student then returns to the first step of the process to do it again, and then again, and then again until eventually they do indeed know how to do something with excellence. For the craftsman this process takes decades.

The beginning of wisdom is knowing that you really don’t know a whole lot.

This was my journey with chair making with Don Weber.[1] Don, speaking with a Welch brogue would call himself a Bodger, “Bodger is a British term describing someone who does a rough job of things. They used to turn these legs and sell them by the gross to the factories.” The method that we used to make the chairs could be done with the simplest of tools, in the most primitive of environments. He gave a gentle correction when I dug a sanding black out of a shop drawer. He said, “sandpaper turns to mush in the woods.” Don’s background and experience drives the student to make every part as if you were in the forest of the Amazon, or the mountains of Appalachia. The Welch Bodger has actually traveled into the Amazon Forest to teach the inhabitants to blacksmith the tools needed to make items from the wood of the forest to be sold so that they can stop deforesting and instead sell those items to make a living.[2]

So I took a five day class with Don Weber and two other fellow students to learn how to build a welch stick chair. Here are some “take aways.”

  1. In the course of five days of building I made several (big) mistakes that changed the look of the chair – I am not going to tell you what these mistakes were, but these mistakes made the chair very much my own In the creative process, mistakes are ok. They are how you learn to fix what you messed up. No one will know if you don’t point them out. Observers will think that was your intent the entire time.
  2. Learning involves big risks. Part of the chair building process is that you have to drill into the seat base to receive the spindles. Carving out the seat takes hours, and if you drill at the wrong angle or in the wrong spot it could ruin the bottom. Or at least, put you in a position of learning how to creatively hide drilled holes. Just saying that for a friend. But in those risks its ok to mess up. You are going to try to do it the right way, but if you mess up, its’ not the end of the world. Its’ just time and wood.
  3. I really enjoyed getting to know Don and the other two gentlemen in my class. One of the other students even has a business where he makes other stuff (other than welch chairs).[3] I was definitely the goat (lowest ranked) of the class. Part of the joy of making things is learning from other people and how they make things – and the friendship that is shared between creatives.
  4. At the end of the day, once the project is complete you have brought some creative thing into the world and it is yours. You made that. Now you can sell it, give it away, or sit on it and drink some coffee. But don’t sit too long there are still many more skills that you need to learn.

_______________

[1] https://www.woodworkersjournal.com/don-weber-the-bodger-of-paint-lick-kentucky/

[2] Knowledge allows you to carry less. Click here See another article I wrote on a similar topic.

[3] https://kyhandcrafted.com/

“The Power of Service in the Lives of Others” Philippians 2:19-30

“How We Grow”

A Sermon Series on Spiritual Disciplines

“The Power of Service in the Lives of Others”

Philippians 2:19-30

 Introduction

For many years Monterey, a California coast town, was a pelican’s paradise. As the fishermen cleaned their fish, they flung the offal to the pelicans. The birds grew fat, lazy, and contented. Eventually, however the offal was utilized, and there were no longer snacks for the pelicans. When the change came the pelicans made no effort to fish for themselves. They waited around and grew gaunt and thin. Many starved to death. They had forgotten how to fish for themselves. The problem was solved by importing new pelicans from the south, birds accustomed to foraging for themselves. They were placed among their starving cousins, and the newcomers immediately started catching fish. Before long, the hungry pelicans followed suit, and the famine was ended.[1]

In the book of Philippians Paul is laying out an argument for a Christian’s conduct, so that his life is “worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27). An example of a person’s life can be a very powerful thing. “Paul himself has provided an example to the Philippians of what it means both to stand firm amid persecution for Christ’s sake (1:12-14, 30) and to submit difficult relational problems among believers to the more important issue of the gospel’s advancement (1:15-18a).”[2]

This morning we will look at two examples that help us to understand how we can be a life changing example for others through our service to Christ, and can look to others who are faithful to encourage us in our walk with the Lord.

 Prayer

The Example of Timothy (vv. 19-24)

19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.

(v. 19) “I hope in the Lord Jesus to”[3] – Paul hopes to do something but everything he does, is “in the Lord” or under God’s direction and control. We have seen several times, in Acts 16 and in the opening verses of Philippians, that Paul has a plan, but then has to change his plan as the Lord leads. In today’s passage he plans to send Timothy back to them. He plans to be released from prison, but he doesn’t know for sure.

He planned to plant churches in one area, but God in a vision, told him to go to Macedonia, completely ignoring the areas he planned to go to. Paul had a strategy of going to Jewish synagogues and showing how Jesus fulfilled prophecy, but when he got to Philippi there were not even 10 Jewish men, much less a synagogue; so his plans had to change.

James 4:13-16 “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance.” With Paul we see a principle that we can apply to our lives;

 Plan and be active in the Lord’s work,

but as the Spirit leads, be willing to change your plans.

Paul has people with him that are helping him in the ministry of defending the gospel, and serving together while he is in prison, and he first highlights Timothy. Paul describes Timothy as “no one else is like him,” Timothy is truly concerned about the Philippian church, he was a person who seeks the interest of Jesus Christ, and he has proven himself to be a co-worker in the kingdom.

Earlier in this chapter, Paul is saying that there are people in the Philippian church that are looking after their own self-interests, that they are selfishly causing division in the church, “Timothy will be an antidote to this spiritual toxemia infecting the Philippians. In his concern for them, they will see a man who seeks not his own interests but those of Jesus Christ. In effect, Paul writes, ‘When I send Timothy to you, you will see in his selfless concern for you the very attitude that you should all extend to each other.”[4]

So Paul is going to send Timothy to the Philippian church, but the language allows us to see that he is not going many miles “on a multi-week journey simply to ask, ‘so, how are you?’ Rather Timothy will ascertain the spiritual state of the church vis-à-vis a hostile culture and in terms of their internal unity (1:27-30).”[5] Paul is concerned about the issues the church is facing, and Timothy is just as interested (or concerned). Paul’s love is expressed for the church in that these issues (disunity, splintering, selfish ambition, conceit, etc.) need to be addressed.

Love is being willing to deal with the unpleasant hard stuff. When I say, “deal” I mean talking with a person who is sinning, and in love point them to Scripture – it is not love to accept sin in a person’s life.

(v. 22) “how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel,” – “It is not that Timothy serves Paul, as ancient fathers would expect to be served by respectful sons; rather, Timothy serves with Paul in the gospel.”[6] The word for served here, refers to the service of slaves (1:1 “Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus”).

In recruiting people to do the work that needs to be done in the church, I have heard it said many times, “Can you come and do this for me?” Or “I’m going to help out so-and-so do this task of that task.” The danger of this way of saying something is that the person is going to do this to serve the person. We all serve the Lord with each other – side-by-side. If a leader asks you to do something, they are asking you to come along side them to serve the Lord. We have leadership, like Paul was Timothy’s leader, but Timothy and Paul served together, with each other (just on different roles).

By Paul describing Timothy as a son, serving with him, “assures the Philippians that Timothy would have the same concern as Paul for their welfare: he will show genuine concern for their welfare.”[7] They share the same heart and concern for the gospel and for the church’s health. Why does Paul emphasize this?

 He has already mentioned earlier, that 1:15 “Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry,” that they “proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me (Paul) in my imprisonment.” Timothy is not like these leaders, he has the same heart as Paul in wanting them to be unified in advancing the gospel (and to solve this, is to root out sin).

The Example of Epaphroditus (vv. 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.

Paul wanted to wait until he heard the decision from the emperor (either his death or his release from his “chains”) until he sent Timothy back to Philippi. However, he wanted to send Epaphroditus back immediately. As soon as the ink dried on the letter – he would be sending him back.

Paul refers to Epaphroditus as “my brother and fellow worker (yokefellow) and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.” In discussing him with the church the emphasis is on their relationship, Paul says that Epaphroditus is my brother, etc. There is a closeness that comes from being a fellow brother, worker, soldier, messenger, and minister in Paul’s ministry of expanding the gospel. As Christians serve together, each seeking to do their best for Jesus, there are relationships that grow and develop.

He had delivered the church’s contribution toward Paul’s expenses while he was in prison, and stayed to help Paul in other ways. In that service he became deathly ill, and the church had heard about it and were concerned. Paul doesn’t want the church to think that Epaphroditus was working against Paul, no he was like a brother he didn’t slack in the work, no he was a fellow worker; he did not cower in sickness, no he was a fellow soldier – he was faithul in delivering what was sent, he was their messenger and ministered to Paul on their behalf.

Epaphroditus was sent by the church to help Paul (he was representing those who could not go and help), however he was returning sooner than expected. Paul wanted the church to know that he was returning in good standing, he did what he was supposed to do – he almost died twice.

There are different ways to interpret Paul explaining what happened while he was with Paul, but I believe that best explanation is that Epaphroditus was sent by the Philippian church to take the money of support to him, to stay and help with the gospel – but instead of helping, he was deathly ill (twice), and Epaphroditus was concerned that the church would be disappointed in his service to Paul. So, Paul is explaining the seriousness of Epaphroditus’ condition.

Why would God allow Epaphroditus to be sent to help Paul, only to have battle two life-threatening rounds of sickness, and then to be sent back sooner than expected?

https://trotters41.com/2013/09/28/sometimes-missionaries-get-sick/

https://www.alifeoverseas.com/how-does-physical-health-impact-a-missionarys-decision-to-leave-the-field/

(v. 27) “But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.” The theme of joy runs throughout the story of the Philippian church. Remember how Paul and Silas were singing hymns and praying after they had been beaten and thrown into prison. Paul expresses the joy that the church has brought to him – but here there is mention of the reality of ministry – Those that allow themselves to feel deeply for others, fellow brothers and sisters in Christ do experience sorrow in the work. So Paul is saying that for him to lose Epaphroditus to death/illness would have been “sorrow upon sorrow.”

It would have been a wave of sorrow (these other preachers that Paul describes as “Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry,” and how they “proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment) the near death of a dear friend, his imprisonment, what ever that first wave was, to then have it followed by another wave of sorrow would have been overwhelming for Paul.

The challenge of just living life, especially being a Christian and living life is you don’t know where people are in these storms. Have they been hit by a wave of sorrow, that you just didn’t see? Are they recovering from a wave of sorrow that has been life changing for them even from years ago? Are they about to enter a storm where they will be hit wave upon wave? God has called us to stand by eachother, to love one another in these storms.

When I was younger my family went to Mexico Beach, Florida every summer for vacation where we would spends many hours at the beach. My dad would take a folding chair and book and to cool off would wade into the water. But because I was little I couldn’t go as far as he could – so I would swim out into the deeper water, and I would put my arms around his neck and I was completely safe – even though the giant waves would sweep over us, no matter how big the waves that came, one after the next. Sometimes in life we need someone to hold on to when the big waves come.

Sometime we Christians will say to someone experiencing a wave of sorrow, ‘“You need to claim the peace of God to guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. You need to learn to be content even in the time of death.’ But Paul’s admission of sorrow is not a confession of sin. The emotion of sorrow is a God-given, Christ-like emotion, especially in the face of death, ‘the last enemy to be destroyed’” (1 Cor. 15:26).”[8] Often times we need a person just to be there during the storm.

God has given us the church to be there when those waves of life come.

 Paul mentions Timothy and Epaphroditus as fellow servants who are there with him, and have faithfully served beside him to advance the gospel. “In the NT, approximately one hundred people are named as associates with the apostle. If we narrow the list to those mentioned in his letters with some form of ministry designation or a particular role, we have a group of about thirty-six, who are referred to with nine different designations; coworker, servant, brothers, etc.”[9] Paul always had people with him in the ministry, and they were sent from a particular church. Living for Christ and doing the work of the church is a group activity.

When I graduated from highschool I took some money that I was given for graduation and bought scuba lessons. I went through the process of taking the classes, we practiced in the pool and for the final test we went to Panama City, Florida, went out in a boat and went diving off of a jetty. You are told constantly “stay with your dive buddy,” well I was swimming along and turned around and my buddy was gone, and about that time I was swept up in a strong current.

It’s like trying to walk in a hurricane – no matter how hard you swim you are being swept backwards. Head over heals (or flipper) – disoriented and freaking out. Eventually, I just relaxed and let the current carry me, and I made my way to the surface to see if I could see the boat and the other divers. When I got to the surface, I was way away from everyone. But if I had continued to fight the current I would gotten tired, ran out of air, and bad things could have happened.

Paul had to be willing to let go of his strategies, ministry plans, and to be led by the Holy Spirit. Timothy had to be willing to let go of control and go or stay with Paul. Epaphroditus was willing to give his life for the sake of the gospel but Paul wants to send him home (he has to let go of the pride of staying and return) – he was a faithful servant, who probably wanted to stay until the end, but his health would not allow it. All of these examples had to be willing to let go of their plans and to be guided by the Holy Spirit. It is our nature to fight the current, but God has put us in a church family so that we can support and be there for each other.

It is service to Christ in the local church that helps us to grow in our faith and accomplish the mission that God has set before us.

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[1] http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/e/example.htm

[2] Frank Thielman, The NIV Application Commentary, Philippians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan, 1995) 151.

[4] Dennis E. Johnson, Reformed Expository Commentary, Philippians (Phillipsburg, New Jersey; P&R Publishing, 2013) 175.

[5] George H. Guthrie, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Philippians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 2023) 205.

[6] Johnson, 178.

[7] G. Walter Hansen, The Pillar New Testament Commentary, The Letter to the Philippians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009) 194.

[8] Hansen, 206.

[9] Guthrie, 208.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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