theological term "kenosis.". have survived without him but that's not how Epaphroditus saw it. How did Paul and his companions purify themselves in the account of Acts 21:26? Ministering to others' physical needs is a spiritual priestly 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. I didn't have money for the surgery as directed by the cardiologists but I stayed on healings scriptures. 3:2) to the Apostle Paul, but He had not yet revealed the entire message to him. Acts 28:25-28 stands as Gods last words to the nation of Israel for nearly two millennia. When he recovers, Paul sends him back to Philippi well established church, to straighten out their doctrine. The gift of healing by the laying on of hands, etc., was no longer needed, because that particular gift was a gift for a sign to the Jews! goddess of love. The church, however, was not to think of Epaphroditus as second best. 2. Epaphroditus is All things are possible to them that believe Mark 9:23. from death it is mercy. used for minister is deokonos -- deacon. All through the Book of Acts we read of tongues, the gift of prophecy, the gift of healing, etc.for example, tongues and prophecy in Acts 19:6, the gift of prophecy in Acts 21:10-14, the gift of healing in Acts 19:11-12 and 28:8,9, etc. Was it perhaps meant to ask for a clarification of my own comment ? Pauls gift of healing (Acts 28:9) was no longer operating in Philippians 2:27, 1 Timothy 5:23 and 2 Timothy 4:20. That will tell you what an answer is. 2:25-30) and Paul no longer had the gift of healing, and was no longer able to heal as he did only a few years earlier in Acts 28:9. Many say that Epaphroditus was homesick. The word "sick" is astheneo, it means: "to be feeble, weak, sick. He provides a pattern that on Phil no. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow (v. 27). But the Lord revealed to Paul that that which is perfect was coming. Interested in joining the Ligonier team? Remember that God is not a man that He should lie. 7 Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the leading man of the island, named Publius, who welcomed us and entertained us courteously three days. How many times was the apostle Paul in a prison in Rome? All references have been taken from the New King James Version. You can help further this work by your prayer and by contributing online or by mailing to: Berean Bible Church Then the report found its way back to Rome, and Epaphroditus got home-sick and was restless, uneasy, 'sore troubled,' as the Apostle says, because they had heard he had been sick. ), Apostolic Fathers (e.g., Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp), Apologists (e.g., Justin Martyr, Clement, Tertullian), Church Fathers (e.g., Gregory, Jerome, Augustine, Ambrose), Flawed Biblical Historical Literary Criticism, PART 8-Jesus Resurrection to the Death of the Apostle John. God owes us nothing! Epaphroditus is one of the less known of Paul's friends. Paul says, No. The Jews sought after signs (1 Cor. In English, as in Greek, this is a neuter pronounthat thing which is perfect. Paul was not writing about the coming of He who is perfect but of the coming of a thing which is perfect. But when Epaphroditus fell sicknear to deathPaul was no longer able to heal him because the gift of healing had ceased to operate. Christ, but they were apostles of the churches: Epaphroditus was an apostle of the church of Philippi. 0 Responses And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. A man who never opens his lips but to censure or criticise, who fastens on faults as wasps do on blemished fruit, will never be surrounded by loyal love. Together these five titles are an important summary of what the Christian life should be. It is all the words that we say to ourselves all the time. He was not just to It means for any gift that you and I will receive from Him by the Holy Spirit is premised on your ability to accept,take, agree or receive without doubt His word which comes as a command, law, or instruction. be grieved over his sickness. we living as sent ones? been painful. We're a little different than other sites. The congregation in Philippi loved this man so much, they did not want him to die. This may be the most important message you ever read. This . Cyprian, the Christian bishop, 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 ). back" but "send." 2 Responses The word "receive" means: "to receive to one's self. Because the tomb was empty! Many in this movement even say shocking claims such as the erroneous idea that being poor is a sin, and that if you are sick, "it's your fault that you're sick." Parallel Commentaries . Epaphroditus wanted to go back to Philippi so they would see that he was alright and end their be guarded at all costs. What he had not yet received in 1 Corinthians 13, he now has. 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. And as for the gift of healing, we read of a co-worker of Paul's, Epaphroditus, who fell seriously ill during this time (Phil. He had an illness which was probably the consequence of his toil. In the remainder of this sermon we shall simply deal with the two figures which the text sets before us, and we may look first at the glimpses of Paul's character which we get here. 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. Timothy was sick and he didn't heal him: Why didn't Paul heal his friends? Living in the modern world, we enjoy the benefits of centuries of technological and scientific progress. But the This is not a rebuke, it literally means: "to complete your service to me." The purpose of the gift of healing was not to keep Christians This is because the word of God is living and active. sick. Paul was imprisoned in Rome for his faith. Indeed he was ill, near to death. Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV). 3. Why would the Apostle Paul insist that married couples have regular sex "except [for one reason only] by mutual consent and for a time (of prayer)" when there may be other factors such as sickness, busyness, or fatigue? The reason that I'm stressing this is because I want Little is known about Epaphroditus (much less than Timothy). Epaphroditus had nearly died in bringing the Philippians' gift to Paul in Rome, but God spared the apostle from great sorrow by healing him. The pattern could not be clearer, and the contrast could not be sharper between the earlier letters and the later letters, between the time when all the sign gifts were operating, and the time when all the sign gifts had ceased. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. It really isn't an answer to a legitimate question. In Gaiuss home, in Corinth, Paul wrote the letter to the Romans (see Rom. to, so much that he almost lost his life pouring it out in sacrificial service to meet Paul's physical When is the last time you set aside something on your agenda And Paul was rejoicing to 2:25-27) He likely longed to know that they knew of and understood his circumstances. Fortunately for both Epaphroditus and Paul, God was merciful and intervened in the situation by healing Epaphroditus. But, what happened? Was it because he had lost his faith, as some would tell us? It is argued that Paul had the "sign" of healing but not the gift of healing. I subscribe to the view that the reason is because the gifts that he was performing in the early days was a "sign to the Jews"; not all spiritual gifts are still in operation today; or, they aren't necessarily "needed." It appears my previous comment has been deleted, no explanation why. In the 28 Therefore I am sending him all the more eagerly so that when you see him again you may rejoice and that I may be less anxious. It is not "send 5:23) and Paul cant heal him, doesnt recommend that he go to a healer in the church, doesnt send a prayer cloth or a bottle of anointing oil (remember the miracles of some 8 years earlier in Acts 19:11-12). Why would he just leave him there sick, if he still had the gift of laying on of hands to heal someone? Epaphroditus wasn't sick because of sin, he was sick because of the work of Christ My question: If a man believes in his heart and confesses with his mouth Jesus Christ and Him risen, he is Born Again, saved. man awaiting trial on a capital charge was laying himself open to the very considerable risk of impact our society, if we are going to be effective in our evangelism, we need to quit selfishly The terms in which the work of Epaphroditus is spoken of by Paul are very significant. This is the only other New How can the Pastoral Epistles not be Pauline? But Paul 8 Responses If he is so valuable, why This isn't to say that God doesn't or won't heal today, because this is obviously not true, but the "laying on of hands" by a man (as a 'gift') has all but ceased, and yet there are still 'healing teachers' out there in the world today teaching a false gospel, having "healing revivals" that come to nought, etc. 13:8).1. You were extremely upset and grieved over Once saved, his spirit is completely made Brand New, is this not a miracle? They are spiritual, priestly functions. The answer is: He wouldn't have! Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Paul's physical needs, it was spiritual. Paul teaches that it's the "Word of Faith" which we preach. the heathen threw out the bodies of their dead and fled in terror. The Book of Acts is replete with 'transitional stages' that are pivotal in the understanding of why all of these changes took place, and why, later, we see different signs no longer being used, or no longer operational in the sense of "signs and wonders," etc. What did the apostle Paul use the gift of tongues for? We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. I weighed the facts and found it a necessity to send The Apostolic Gifts are no longer in operation today: 1) Laying on of hands to heal someone (if this were still the case, then people could walk into nursing homes and hospitals and begin healing people left-and-right, but this doesn't happen. I let me congregation of brothers and sisters down, The brothers in Philippi must think that I am incompetent. The reason why Paul didn't heal Trophimus is because he no longer had the 'gift' of healing. It wasn't Paul's lack of compassion for his friend. And he urged those married couples to have relations often, rather than living together celibately. View all posts by Christian Publishing House, UASV DAILY DEVOTIONAL, TUESDAY, MARCH 01, 2022. I have had people want to debate on this wine issue by saying that "wine isn't medicine," which is to split hairs (weak rebuttal that holds no ground). Epaphroditus had made a 600-mile journey from Philippi to Rome, an 80-day journey on foot round trip, which was fatiguing, to visit the apostle Paul. 1:4). In his low, nervous state, barely convalescent, the thought of home and of his brethren's anxiety about him was too much for him. To summarise, Paul was a servant of God; Paul's spiritual gifts did not make God a servant of Paul. January 23 2014 Report chained to a guard: The Philippians, upon hearing about Paul's needs, took an offering and sent it by the hand of Though Paul had the gift of healing, he did not heal this individual. Epaphroditus was serving as a representative of the Philippian congregation and the apostle Paul. history, used all through the LXX to refer to the sacrificial system of the Old Covenant and the
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