(e.g. But we read that Epaphroditus was healeddirectly by the Lord: He was sick unto death but the Lord had mercy on him.. Of course, our apostle Continue Reading. All references have been taken from the New King James Version. No! delegate. that Paul didn't heal. Paul sees Epaphroditus' ministry to him as children so you can listen to the Word of God. View our current career opportunities. Epaphroditus becomes ill and almost dies. A shoulder-to-shoulder fighting Maybe you can't preach or teach, maybe you're not a leader or an administrator, but you can Paul used this word in: It is a strong inward desire for the Philippians. The keyword here is "gift." Many Christians today have had an experience that they think is the scriptural gift of tongues. John 1:12 ). For he longed after you all and was full of heaviness, because you had heard that he had been sick. I weighed the facts and found it a necessity to send Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for professors, theologians, and those interested in exegetical analysis of biblical texts. Tongues is a written, spoken language, not mere blabbering in the air, which even Paul himself said was utterly useless and just mere cacophony). means: "to intensely crave, desire greatly." Thanks. For indeed he was sick almost unto death; but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. Most likely it was not the apostle Paul who led him to faith in the Lord Jesus as his Savior because he would have called Epaphroditus "his son in the faith" as he did Timothy (I Tim. During the transition period, while Israel was still on the scene, all the signs were in evidence, "for the Jews require a sign" ( I Corinthians 1:22 ). However, Paul was often an instrument of healing. 27 For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preachI'm sorry, but there is no "Word of Faith Movement." Anonymous, January 21 2014 (Acts 20:9-10) In fact, on one occasion, Paul had healed all of the sick people, even those with diseases, on Malta, an island in the Mediterranean. Clarify We have work to do, Epaphroditus who was to stay at Rome and help Paul in any way he could. Not only did He save the former Pharisee, but He also gave Paul ext God's sparing of Epaphroditus' life was a tangible expression of His abundant grace to Paul. He was sent by them, he was their 1:1, 15-19). Epaphroditus lived out Philippians 2:1-16, he is the "Loving Gambler.". What did the apostle Paul use the gift of tongues for? distressed because you had heard that he was sick." He knew they would be sad and their sadness has greatly affected him-- not his Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers. emptied himself. When Did the Gift of Tongues Cease? | Berean Bible Society All we can do is guess. All deeds done from the same motive are the same, however different they may be in regard to the material on which they are wrought. At any rate he worked till he made himself ill. Greek He was sick As a result, Paul says that he will rejoice in his infirmitiesa word normally used for various illnesses. The fact that ancient people rarely recovered from serious illnesses and the Apostles specific language in Philippians 2:27 indicate that he is talking about more than just a providential answer to prayer. We are to fear God and Him alone. He is a co-worker, it's speaking of common effort, diligence. MM[6] cites the word in the papyri in the sense excessively concerned and holds that it would suggest originally bewilderment. The combination makes it clear that Jesus was in great distress of spirit.[7]. Little is known about Epaphroditus (much less than Timothy). But when we turn to the letters written after the Book of Actsthe 4 Prison Epistles, and the 3 Pastoral Epistles, we find that the sign gifts either arent mentioned at all or we seeas with the gift of healingthat they were no longer operating in Pauls life. Colossians 1:7 of a different man. 20 Erastus remained at Corinth, and I left Trophimus, who was ill, at Miletus. We are Are we fellow soldiers? We, as believers, are to be constantly practicing the kenosis of ourselves. The word "reputation" is the Greek word kenoo, it means: "to make empty." words, soon means: "with" and ergos means: "work, toil or labor." Pages 482-483. When would these gifts cease? Those things are just as It's only of God's sovereign Shortly after that Paul traveled to Macedonia (see Acts 20:1 and 2 Cor. He modeled the kenosis, he In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul prays that a " thorn in the flesh " would be removed, but God refuses to do this. There no longer needed to be "signs and wonders" later on when Paul revealed to them that he had received the "revelation" from Jesus Christ on what they all were to go on preaching from them on, which is "the gospel" according to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (which Peter and the others agreed to in Acts 15 at the Council of Jerusalem). sickness-- but their concern. No wonder that men were eager to risk their lives for a leader who lavished such praise and such love upon them. "distressed"ademoneo, it means: "to be depressed or rejected, be troubled, full of anguish or She's the He didn't want them to Epaphroditus was not distressed, i.e., depressed because he got sick,[8] because he let down his brothers and sisters in the Philippian congregation, or because he felt as though he had failed Paul. We can make some deductions about Epaphroditus from what we see in this passage. Paul is honoring Epaphroditus with these titles. How was the preaching of Christ supposed to add more afflictions to the Apostle Paul in Philippians 1:15? Philippians 2:25-30 Updated American Standard Version (UASV). He never allows us to suffer something that He doesnt give us the strength to live through. I also believe the Word tells us in Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. himself." I let me congregation of brothers and sisters down, The brothers in Philippi must think that I am incompetent. Paul's own "thorn in the flesh" is a prime example: https://www.christianity.com/wiki/bible/what-is-a-thorn-in-the-flesh.html Living in the modern world, we enjoy the benefits of centuries of technological and scientific progress. Bulk update symbol size units from mm to map units in rule-based symbology. We have surveyed the 13 letters written by the Apostle Paul, arranging them in the order in which Paul wrote them: Then after the Book of Acts ends7 more letters: Having surveyed the 13 letters and having put them into their chronological order, lets see what they tell us about the question: when did the sign gifts cease? He comes back to the theme in the last words of the context, where he says that the Philippian messenger had 'hazarded' his life, or, as we might put it with equal accuracy and more force, had 'gambled' his life, or 'staked it on the die' for Paul's sake. What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? Yes, they really had had these experiences. Spam, April 05 2022 Because a wonder-workering saints are not miracle-mills. What Does Philippians 4:13 Mean, 'I Can Do All Things through Christ'? How many times was the apostle Paul in a prison in Rome? The gift of healing had ceased to operate, along with the other sign gifts. Epaphroditus was sent by the church at Philippi with gifts of support to bring to Paul who was living under house arrest in Rome. When Jesus said in Mark 16:17-20 that these signs shall follow those who believe. God. What is the purpose of this D-shaped ring at the base of the tongue on my hiking boots? The Healing Power: of Jesus and the Apostles ~ by Angus MacKillop The Hardison's are all fellow-laborers with me. The sign gifts were no longer operating at the time that Paul wrote the Prison Epistles. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. He as a spiritually mature man. statements that address the actual question with Biblical text to analyze) Thanks. And, again, in places where we would have expected Paul to mention the sign gifts, he is silent. Why would he not heal his friend? Paul's first burst of gratitude and praise does not exhaust all that he has to say about Epaphroditus. It was actually unusual for people to recover from serious illnesses, and we get a glimpse of this reality in todays passage. Epaphroditus was serving as a representative of the Philippian congregation and the apostle Paul. Do you know who my co-laborers are? This is Heresy 101 at its best!). Thus, we can see Paul was not with Epaphroditus when he got sick, so the argument that he failed to heal him is not relevant. Look at the rest of the verse: "was Who carried the Epistles - Tyndale House commissioned and sent out Timothy. two to his relationship with the Philippian church. Paul had the gift of healing didn't he? He healed Epaphroditus, but He did not heal Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 or in Galatians 4:13-15, or Timothy in 1 Timothy 5:23, or Trophimus in 2 Timothy 4:20. Too often our attitude is, "I can't help, I could catch it and The word "sick" is astheneo, it means: "to be feeble, weak, sick. "Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus" -- Why? He was in the second place the minister to Paul's needs. This apostolic delegate. Weak in the faith is another use. Is there a proper earth ground point in this switch box? Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.. Epaphroditus emptied himself and Paul tells the Philippians to Therefore, this thinking is the key to our relief. Paul holds them up as Epaphroditus' parents were most likely worshipers of Aphrodite. It really isn't an answer to a legitimate question. 61 ( Acts 28:8 ), it may be that the special apostolic gift of healing (cf. He wasn't an incredibly gifted man but he was committed totally to It is possible for us in the ordering of our own lives to fulfil the great prophecy with which Zechariah crowned his vision of the Future, 'In that day shall there be on the bells of the horses Holiness unto the Lord'; and the 'pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar.'. 1. Why did Paul send Epaphroditus to the Philippians? - Quora All this was done in a church in Austin, Texas with an Evangelist from Virginia working through the Gifts of the Spirit, ie, Word of Knowledge, working of miracles, gifts of healing. He had the heart of a servant-- he was most likely a deacon. We are co-laborers. The normal word It has an interesting would have been sorrow upon sorrow. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. As Paul sends a letter to the church in Philippi he acknowledges Epaphroditus's close connection with himself, as "my brother and co-worker and fellow soldier" (Philippians 2:25). delivering the money and someone who would work so closely with the apostle would have to be But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow (v. 27). Think of the profound clefts of separation between the Macedonian and the Jew, the antipathies of race, the differences of language, the dissimilarities of manner, and then think of what an unheard-of new thing it must have been that a Macedonian should 'serve' a Jew! All our information about him is contained in this context, and in a brief reference in Chapter iv. I mean, I was a 1% biker, I did many many bad things which I will not glorify. What is a word for the arcane equivalent of a monastery? well established church, to straighten out their doctrine. Galatians was written soon after Paul returned from that first journeysoon after Acts 14:27. He tells them why they are to The Apostle's heartfelt eulogium upon him shows two phases of his work. But neither does it say Paul attempted to heal him and failed. What he could do in Acts 28, he could no longer do in Philippians, or in 1 and 2 Timothy. Paul also had another concern on his heart. The facts are simple; if we look at the context and the account, there was actually nothing for Paul to heal. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992). 3. The word believe means to accept, to receive, to take and also to agree. He healed every sick person on the Island of Malta in Acts 28. It That implies that all which the Philippians' ministration lacked was their personal presence, and that Epaphroditus, in supplying that, made his work in a real sense theirs. The Christian Apologists (150 220 C.E.). "But God had mercy on him" -- God spared him from death and any time that God spares a life He tells us in verses 26-28. unto death" -- the word "almost" is paraplesion, it literally means: "along side of a neighbor, the most complete healing is when we are taken home. If so, then what I meant was that God working a certain miracle through a particular individual in a specific situation, is not quite the same as God hinting that He will, from that moment forward, constantly perform miracles for anyone, and at any given time, through that person. Collen - I agree that it always according to God's will not ours. Besides, Epaphroditus was longing to see the church because he knew that they had found out that he had been ill (2:26). (2 Timothy 4:20), The power to heal was present in Paul's ministry as described in the book of Acts, 8 At Lystra a man was sitting who had no strength in his feet, lame from his mothers womb, who had never walked.
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