Epaphroditus
Epaphroditus is one of the many unsung heroes of the Bible. His name means “attractive”. And while we don’t know anything about his physical appearance, when we read the New Testament we quickly discover that he possessed a beautiful character. While others were abandoning the Apostle Paul in droves, Epaphroditus remained his faithful and loyal friend. When the Apostles lamented the selfishness of those who clamored for the Christian spotlight, Epaphroditus was on the short list of those who truly cared for the welfare of others.
In stark contrast to the values of our day where self-preservation, recreation and relaxation are a top priority, Epaphroditus like Paul worked himself to the point of exhaustion for the cause of Christ. Some would have expected Paul to chide Epaphroditus for overextending himself, but instead Paul praises him as an exemplary servant of Jesus Christ.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, when it comes to individuals with attractive and godly hearts like Epaphroditus, we must be sure that they are not unsung. Paul writes of him in Philippians 2:29, “honor such men!” So when you find a modern-day Epaphroditus, be sure he or she is not an obscure or unsung character in the story of your life.
Glorify Christ
It is amazing to me how little effort we Christians commonly put into our work and service for Christ. When the world puts on a dinner for a band of politicians, a red carpet premier for an ensemble of actors, or an awards banquet for a varied group of athletes…
Compartmentalization
It is easy to compartmentalize our lives. While sitting in church we can approvingly nod at the biblical lessons that call Christ’s followers to sacrifice, deny themselves, and leave behind earthly pleasures to store up treasure in heaven. But come Monday morning…
Real Trust
Trust in God is often expressed by our restraint. We are expected to recognize that God is present, aware and lovingly involved in every difficult situation we face. It is required that Christians curb many of…
Communion
The Bible tells us that we need to take a good, long look at what is going on in our hearts when we partake in the Lord’s Supper. “Let a person examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup…
Praying Well
We may imagine it an easy thing to pray a simple prayer. But it turns out to be an incredible challenge to pray often and pray well. Even so, God calls his people to a kind of continual and thoughtful communication that saturates every…
Hard Work
The Bible has a lot to say about working hard, being disciplined, and fighting all slothful tendencies. The Christian work ethic we derive from the teaching of both the Old and New Testament leaves no room for leisurely lives…
Don’t Drift
Hebrews 2:1 tells us that “we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.” Much like a leisurely float down a meandering river, if we choose to relax in the Christian life we can be assured that the tide of our culture…
Four Things God Cannot Do
For years on playgrounds everywhere church kids have been stymied by the agitator’s questions, “Can God do anything? And if so, can he make a rock so big he can’t move it?” While children may struggle with the answer, I hope the rest of us do not…
Opportunities
Followers of Christ always need to be on the look out for opportunities to stand up for Christ and to speak up for his cause. And the more sinful the culture, the more critical it is that God’s people exploit…
Hard Truth
We all work to make our lives as comfortable and pain-free as possible. We buy all sorts of appliances and gadgets to make hard jobs easy, and seek out any available remedy to alleviate our bodily aches and pains. And this makes perfect sense. Only a masochist would…