Paul's WILLINGNESS to be "POURED OUT" (Philippians 2:17)
is an ECHO of the One Who WILLINGLY "EMPTIED Himself" (Philippians 2:7)
Paul DETERMINED it to be so - "YEA, and (EVEN) IF"
(Philippians 2:17) - it meant HIS JOY on THEIR BEHALF "in the DAY OF CHRIST"
(Philippians 2:16)
Paul DECLARED, "I WILL VERY GLADLY SPEND and BE SPENT
for you" (II Corinthians 12:15)
Paul WILLINGLY faced his FINAL being "OFFERED"
("POURED OUT"), i.e. "the TIME of my DEPARTURE" (II Timothy 4:6) - having "a DESIRE to DEPART, and to be with Christ: which is
FAR BETTER" (Philippians 1:23)
Paul REJOICED in SUFFERINGS and so GLADLY BORE "the
AFFLICTIONS of Christ in my FLESH for His Body's sake" (Colossians 1:24):
Paul TESTIFIED, "I BEAR in my BODY the MARKS of the
Lord Jesus" (Galatians 6:17):
"STRIPES ABOVE MEASURE ... FIVE TIMES RECEIVED I
FORTY STRIPES SAVE ONE" (II Corinthians 11:23-24)
The Lord ordained PAUL'S SUFFERINGS (Acts 9:15-16)
to serve as GOD'S "PATTERN" of "LONGSUFFERING" (I Timothy 1:15-16) in "this present EVIL world (AGE)" (Galatians 1:4):
Under "the DISPENSATION of the GRACE of God"
(Ephesians 3:2) - God is "ENDURING with MUCH LONGSUFFERING the VESSELS of WRATH
FITTED to DESTRUCTION ... that He might MAKE KNOWN the RICHES of His GLORY on the VESSELS of MERCY ... afore PREPARED
unto GLORY" (Romans 9:22-23)
The Philippians repsonded to PAUL'S SACRIFICIAL JOY with
LIKE SACRIFICIAL JOY (Philippians 2:18)
Paul INFORMS the Philippians that "I TRUST (HOPE)
in the Lord Jesus to SEND TIMOTHEUS (TIMOTHY) SHORTLY (QUICKLY) unto you, WHEN I KNOW your state" (Philippians 2:19)
Paul said that he would SEND TIMOTHY "PRESENTLY (IMMEDIATELY),
so SOON AS I SHALL SEE how it will go with me" (Philippians 2:23)
Paul expressed CONFIDENCE to them that God would allow
him to "ABIDE and CONTINUE with you all for your FURTHERANCE and joy of faith" (Philippians 1:25)
and so again he says, "But I TRUST (HOPE) in the Lord that I ALSO MYSELF SHALL COME SHORTLY (QUICKLY)"
(Philippians 2:24)
Paul COMMENDS TIMOTHY to the Philippians by saying, "I
have NO MAN (NO ONE) LIKEMINDED" (Philippians 2:20) as Timothy "who will NATURALLY CARE FOR YOUR STATE" (Philippians 2:20)
- "For ALL SEEK THEIR OWN" (Philippians 2:21) and "NOT the things WHICH ARE JESUS CHRIST'S" (Philippians 2:21)
Timothy POSSESSED that "MIND ... which was also IN
CHRIST JESUS" (Philippians 2:5), i.e. he POSSESSED that "LOWLINESS OF MIND" which places
OTHERS BEFORE SELF (Philippians 2:3 cf.II Corinthians 8:9)
Timothy was NOT one who THROUGH "VAINGLORY (PRIDE)"
PROMOTED "STRIFE" (Philippians 2:3), BUT was one who THROUGH "CHARITY (LOVE)" SOUGHT the "EDIFICATION"
OF OTHERS and so he was NOT PUFFED BY KNOWLEDGE (I Corinthians 8:1-3 cf.I Corinthians 13:4-5)
Paul PERSONALLY ENDORSED TIMOTHY by declaring to the Philippians,
"YE KNOW THE PROOF of him, that, AS A SON WITH THE FATHER, he hath SERVED WITH ME in the gospel" (Philippians 2:22)
Paul AFFECTIONATELY ADDRESSED Timothy as "MY OWN
SON in the faith" (I Timothy 1:2) and again as "Thou therefore, MY SON" (II Timothy 2:1)
There is HONORABLE SERVICE as that of a SERVANT TO HIS
MASTER (Colossians 3:22-24)
But the HIGHEST SERVICE is that of "A SON WITH THE
FATHER" (Philippians 2:22):
While Paul was waiting to "see how it will go with
me" (Philippians 2:23) concerning his being able to "come shortly (quickly)" (Philippians 2:24)
- he "supposed (considered)" it necessary TO SEND Ephaphroditus (Philippians 2:25) TO RECEIVE the Philippians' SACRIFICIAL GIFTS (Philippians 4:18)
TO MEET his "WANTS (NEEDS)" (Philippians 2:25)
Paul valued EPAPHRODITUS as his "FELLOWLABOURER"
and "FELLOWSOLDIER" (Philippians 2:25)
As Paul's "FELLOWSOLDIER" (Philippians 2:25),
Epaphroditus was one who was able to "ENDURE HARDNESS" (II Timothy 2:3) by NOT becoming "ENTANGLED" - "with the AFFAIRS of
THIS LIFE" (II Timothy 2:4)
Epaphroditus' ENERGETIC SPIRITUAL LABOURS resulted in
GRAVE PHYSICAL ILLNESS, which caused both Paul and the Philippians to have GREAT "HEAVINESS" of "SORROW"
(Philippians 2:26-27)
Epaphroditus' PHYSICAL HEALING DIRECTLY BY GOD WITHOUT
HUMAN INTERVENTION was GOD'S EXPRESSION OF MERCY to Paul (Philippians 2:27), which is why Paul "SENT him the MORE CAREFULLY (DILIGENTLY)"
to the Philippians so that they "MAY REJOICE" to "SEE HIM AGAIN" being PHYSICALLY RECOVERED
(Philippians 2:28)
During Paul's EARLY MINISTRY - PRIOR to the CLOSE of the
ACTS PERIOD while God was APPEALING "ALL DAY LONG" to "ISRAEL ... a DISOBEDIENT and GAINSAYING (DISPUTING)
PEOPLE" (Romans 10:21):
Paul's GENTILE MINISTRY INCLUDED the GIFT of PHYSICAL
HEALING (Acts 19:10-12) in order to PROVOKE ISRAEL to JEALOUSY (Romans 11:13-14)
AFTER God's SETTING ASIDE of ISRAEL (Acts 28:25-28)
"UNTIL the FULLNESS of the GENTILES be come in" (Romans 11:25) DURING this GENTILE "DISPENSATION of the grace of God" (Ephesians 3:1-2):
Paul's GENTILE MINISTRY reveals the ABSENCE of the GIFT
of PHYSICAL HEALING (I Timothy 5:23;II Timothy 4:20),
which is consistent with the "all SPIRITUAL blessings in HEAVENLY places" (Ephesians 1:3) possessed by "the CHURCH, which is His BODY" (Ephesians 1:22-23)
Paul exhorted the Philippians to RECEIVE EPAPHRODITUS
"WITH ALL GLADNESS" and to "HOLD SUCH IN REPUTATION (ESTEEM)" (Philippians 2:29), e.g. PHEBE, "a SUCCOURER (AIDER) of many" (Romans 16:1-2)
and "the HOUSE of STEPHANAS ... ADDICTED themselves TO THE MINISTRY of the saints" (I Corinthians 16:15)
Epaphroditus HAZARDED his OWN LIFE to SUPPLY to Paul what
the Philippians LACKED (Philippians 2:30), i.e. their LACK of OPPORTUNITY to GIVE IN PERSON (Philippians 4:10)
what Paul had RECEIVED from them VIA the HAND of EPAPHRODITUS (Philippians 4:18)