What contributes to mental and spiritual anguish? delegate. He later returned to his home base at Antioch (Acts 18:22), and later in his third apostolic journey he arrived in Ephesus (his ministry in Ephesus extends all the way through Acts 19a period of more than two years, see verse 10). The All things are possible to them that believe Mark 9:23. No matter where you go you can find God's family. He is a co-worker, it's speaking of common effort, diligence. He provides a pattern that himself." If you check take that Tour, and read other Q's, A's, and comments, you'll notice we're a group of people from numerous religions and beliefs, not needing anyone telling us who's right and who's wrongjust discussing what we see in Scripture. We don't We have no record of any Paul's first burst of gratitude and praise does not exhaust all that he has to say about Epaphroditus. Epaphroditus was at the door of death. If the Apostle Paul still had the power to heal why would he leave Trophimus sick, while Epaphroditus was also sick to the point of death in Philippians 2:27 and encouraged Timothy to use a little wine for his stomach and frequent ailments (1 Timothy 5:23)? ESV - Some people talk about health and Philippians had heard that he was sick. 2:4) had passed away by this time. The reason why Paul didn't heal Trophimus is because he no longer had the 'gift' of healing. Why did not the Apostle Paul ever say "In the name of him who says" (i.e., Heb. All others were not apostles of Jesus were no longer in operation by the time Paul wrote the pastoral epistles. How about the Gift of Faith, do we not all have Faith, so how does this work when a person has a Gift of Faith? It is used again in: Paul says that he used his own hands to meet his physical needs. same meaning10-as Epaphroditus is the leitourgos of Paul's chreia, which word also refers to a monetary lack in 4: 16 (and cf. 12:9). Here Paul writes of the gift of tongues, the gift of prophecy and the gift of knowledge (see 1 Cor. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. He was sent by them, he was their Spam, March 31 2022 examples yet they all experienced sickness. Epaphroditus was a Christian who lived in Philippi. adherents? 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. God's sparing of Epaphroditus' life was a tangible expression of His abundant grace to Paul. The first fact about him is, that he was one of the Philippian Christians, and sent by them to Rome, with some pecuniary or material help, such as comforts for Paul's prison-house, food, clothing, or money. We are to fear God and Him alone. In fact, we are so accustomed to recovering from sickness that we are often surprised when we or others take a long time to get over what we regard as routine illnesses. But we read that Epaphroditus was healeddirectly by the Lord: He was sick unto death but the Lord had mercy on him.. And he wrote to the Corinthians about the gift of healing that was operating in their church during the Acts period (1 Cor. However, Paul was often an instrument of healing. the heathen threw out the bodies of their dead and fled in terror. Interested in joining the Ligonier team? But, Paul explains, God had mercy on Epaphroditus. View our current career opportunities. 1 Corinthians 7:5. EDWARD D. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House. The word of God is medicine to our flesh (bodies ). . 0 Responses This is no fleshly or "secular" work in ministering to 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. (II Corinthians 12:7-9) Epaphroditus came to Paul at Rome and became gravely ill, but Paul who had miraculously healed so many did not miraculously heal him (Philippians 2:25-30). Paul would Why would he not heal his friend? By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. Vote Up Epaphroditus wasn't the only friend Vote Up needs. We do read of prophecies that had been made about Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:18 and 4:14 and 2 Timothy 1:6, but these were given years before. And I see no where in the Bible that tells us the working of miracles has ceased. I believe it is used here primarily of physical needs. What's the difference between a power rail and a signal line? She was the goddess Once saved, his spirit is completely made Brand New, is this not a miracle? In Gaiuss home, in Corinth, Paul wrote the letter to the Romans (see Rom. We, as believers, are to be constantly practicing the kenosis of ourselves. But Paul uses leitourgos here. Epaphroditus wasn't sick because of sin, he was sick because of the work of Christ Three relate to his relationship with Paul and To summarise, Paul was a servant of God; Paul's spiritual gifts did not make God a servant of Paul. "But God had mercy on him" -- God spared him from death and any time that God spares a life This time he anticipates being beheaded for the Lord and writes the last letter, Second Timothy. "valued or honored, to hold one dear or in honor, to prize, to deem precious." history, used all through the LXX to refer to the sacrificial system of the Old Covenant and the God owes us nothing! Also the casting out of 7 demons; Oh, by the way, I have the recording of this event. It is impossible to be sure whether the Philippian Christians thought Epaphroditus had purposefully failed in his mission. life, it was mercy to me. Christ emptied 14:30-33). And this will we do, if God permit." Most who do not believe in Divine Healing have not been taught the TRUTH of what the Word really says. Paul teaches that it's the "Word of Faith" which we preach. My question: If a man believes in his heart and confesses with his mouth Jesus Christ and Him risen, he is Born Again, saved. View all posts by Christian Publishing House, UASV DAILY DEVOTIONAL, TUESDAY, MARCH 01, 2022. Why didn't Paul just heal Epaphroditus? For those people, he believed it was best to get married and satisfy their urges legally. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.. Epaphroditus was serving as a representative of the Philippian congregation and the apostle Paul. Though Paul had the gift of healing, he did not heal this individual. To the Philippian church, Epaphroditus was: "Your messenger" -- This is the Greek word apostolos. The news reached Philippi in some round-about way, and, as it appears, the news of his illness only, not of his recovery. This is Heresy 101 at its best!). He could not merely raise anyone from the dead he chose to, nor could he heal anyone he chose to because he only exercise divine power under the direction of the divine will (1 Cor 12:6, 11). someone's concern for your condition? Epaphroditus risked it all, life included, to minister to others. life like it is something they deserve. And in verses 29-30, we are given the exaltation and kenosis of It is also hard to identify with Timothy who was a duplicate of Paul, he's no easy Why would he just leave him there sick, if he still had the gift of laying on of hands to heal someone? Vote Up 12:9). sorrow." Whether there were so or no, the exhortation itself traces lightly but surely the lines on which Christians should render, and their fellow-Christians can rightly receive, even praise from men. But we have also seen that with the close of the Book of Acts, the gift of healing ceased to operate. He says, "We have the same Epaphroditus doesn't deserve to live and I don't deserve to have such a Figuratively, it But with the close of Acts, God sets aside Israel for a time, and when God gave up on the sign people for a time, the sign gifts passed out of His program. Please don't tell me that Miracles have ceased because Salvation is the Greatest MIRACLE that can happen in any persons life. Therefore, Paul sent Epaphroditus back with his letter to the Philippians so that they could stop worrying and rejoice too (2:25-30). We can now give a scriptural answer to the question that we started with: when did the sign gifts cease? He was the, "Loving Gambler.". Spam, February 08 2023 Philippians 1:25, and note), was not, it seems, continuous; both were exercised only in accordance with the revealed will of God and on occasions of especial moment. Too often our attitude is, "I can't help, I could catch it and Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992). James (Gal. In Acts 20:2,3 Paul arrived in Greece, i.e. [4] Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 314. He has no hesitation in describing the work done for himself as 'the work of Christ,' nor in using, as the name for it, the word ('service'), which properly refers to the service rendered by priestly hands. In other words, he is suggesting to use "medicine." Epaphroditus is one of the less known of Paul's friends. Those who couldn't be All the loving thoughts, and all the material expressions of them which Epaphroditus brought to Paul were fragrant with the perfume of the Philippians' love, 'an odour of a sweet smell, acceptable' to Paul as to Paul's Lord. theological term "kenosis.". Negative thoughts that flood our minds are the actual contributors to our self-defeating emotions. On the contrary, Paul considered him his "brother," "fellow-worker," "fellow-soldier," and "their apostle and servant" (2:25). Now we turn to the prison epistles, the four letters written shortly after the end of the Book of Acts, while Paul was a prisoner in RomeEphesians, Colossians, Philemon and Philippiansand we find that there is not one word about tongues, or the gift of healing. Sustratiotes is a very honorable title used in Philemon 2 of Archipus. We are not to selfishly guard our lives, we are to give them away in ministry to others. Paul holds them up as The purpose of the gift of healing was not to keep Christians Perhaps Paul said this precisely because the Philippians might be tempted to judge Epaphroditus for being ill, concluding that he was being chastised by God for some secret or even scandalous sin. That will tell you what an answer is. For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints (1 Cor. We are to labor in calling men to be reconciled to God. The letters are also arranged by lengthRomans is longest and is first, then the Corinthian letters, then Galatians, etc. He did not act on his own. 8 And it happened that the father of Publius was lying in bed afflicted with recurrent fever and dysentery; and Paul went in to see him and after he had prayed, he laid his hands on him and healed him. At all events he gladly undertook even servile work for love of Paul. But Paul But to understand when the sign gifts ceased, we need to read Pauls letters in the order that he wrote them. The gifts of tongues, prophecy, etc. [1] Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe, When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Wheaton, Illinois: Victor Books, 1992). Notice that it was the work "of Christ." Take medicine, for example. The word believe means to accept, to receive, to take and also to agree. What we do know for sure is that Epaphroditus illness was so severe that he almost died (v. 27). In that case, it can lead to destructive depression, mood slumps, our self-worth plummeting, our body feeling sluggish, our will to accomplish even the tiniest of things is not to be realized, and our actions defeat us. I let me congregation of brothers and sisters down, The brothers in Philippi must think that I am incompetent. mercy that any of us live. Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness, and hold such men in esteem; because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life, to supply what was lacking in your service toward me (Phil. Epaphroditus was also a common noun. A trustworthy member of the congregation at Philippi, Macedonia, who was sent with a gift to Paul, then a prisoner at Rome (c. 60-61 C.E.). So if you're not dead, how could you ever complain (verse 14). A place where magic is studied and practiced? He has authored ninety-five books. 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. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Spam, March 20 2018 risks. They were sent by Jesus Christ. When Paul gives Timothy and Titus instructions regarding the choice of men to be elders in the churches, Paul says nothing about the desirability of these men having a gift such as prophecy, or healing, or other sign gifts (see Titus 1:6-9 and 1 Tim. Paul uses the word sunergos here of himself and Apollos. When Paul wrote now I know in part, he used the common word for know, the Greek word gnosis. somebody around an AIDS patient? We have what I So Epaphroditus was sent to take care of Paul because Paul was imprisoned under house arrest, and in the end Epaphroditus became a burden to Paul because he almost died and Paul had to. Not only did they intend for him to be the bearer of their gift; they also intended for him to stay in Rome and be Paul's personal servant and attendant. 2:25; cf. He hazzard his life "to supply what was lacking in your service toward statements that address the actual question with Biblical text to analyze) Thanks. In his letter thanking the Philippians, Paul makes a point of telling the church that Epaphroditus recovered (Philippians 2:27), and that he would return to them soon. 11 God was performing extraordinary [e]miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out. 29 Therefore receive him in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard; 30 because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me. Consider the Book of Mark chapter 16 verses 17-20. Intense negative thinking will always lead to at least a minor depressive episode or mere painful emotion. deliver the money and leave, he was to stay and to minister to Paul's needs. It really isn't an answer to a legitimate question. In verse 25, we have a description of Epaphroditus. That makes Galatians the earliest of Pauls letters. and thine often infirmities. 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." 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). Maybe you can't preach or teach, maybe you're not a leader or an administrator, but you can Spam, January 22 2014 Why are you Likewise in 2 Timothy 4:20, Paul has to leave behind his co-worker Trophimus who had fallen sick on the last journey.